TRADERS who run the stalls at Marlborough's Wednesday and Saturday markets are opposing plans to close the public toilets at the town hall.

Kennet District Council is carrying out a review of all the public conveniences in its area.

In Marlborough Kennet proposes closing the toilets at the town hall and in Chantry Lane and keeping one set of manned conveniences in the George Lane car park.

The district council has offered the town hall toilets to the town council to run. But the town council said it had no funds to take on this extra responsibility and asked Kennet not only to keep the town hall toilets open but refurbish them as well.

Now market traders have written to Kennet objecting to any proposal to shut the toilets at the town hall.

In the letter they said: "It is true that the existing toilets are poorly maintained, in urgent need of updating and improvement and a disgraceful reflection upon the town and your council, but they do provide an essential service.

"Market traders work in the open on the High Street throughout the year. We pay a fair rent to Kennet and therefore is it not unreasonable to expect that you provide conveniences close to the market stalls."

The alternative toilets in George Lane, said the traders, were too far away.

Yesterday stallholders at the Wednesday market said they could not see any reason behind Kennet's plan.

Eddie Grandy who runs a sock and clothes stall said: "If the council provided somebody to run our stalls while we pop to the toilets it wouldn't be so bad.

"We all pay a lot of rent and we get very little back for in terms of support by the council."

Sonia Wright who runs a plant stall said: "What are the market customers, especially the old people who come in from the villages, meant to do? Go into a tea shop and spend money they don't have?"

John Burrett who has sold toiletries and hardware on the market for 25 years, said: "It is not just us who will be affected. This is meant to be a tourist town, what about them?"

Tool stall owner Julean Jacklin said: "If you are a sole trader like me it will be very difficult to go all the way down to the car park toilets. You can't keep popping into the pubs and using theirs."

Shoe stall holder Malcolm Ledbury said: "You can run to the town hall and be back in a minute. You can't always get someone to keep an eye on your stall."