Public toilets in Aspatria are more likely to remain open after Allerdale council agreed to pay a legal bill.

Aspatria Town Council agreed to an asset transfer to ensure that the toilets in the Brandraw car park remained open to the public.

Allerdale council renovated the toilets and Aspatria took out the necessary insurance.

The deal nearly fell through, however, when the town council found itself faced with a large legal bill.

Acting mayor Alan Maxwell said: "We discovered that the asset transfer would cost £800 plus VAT and then £35 an hour for any legal time spent on the transfer after that.

"That was more than we could afford or were prepared to pay and Allerdale also refused to pay it.

"After negotiations with the legal company concerned - we told them just to put a junior on the case - we got the bill down to £600."

Mr Maxwell said Allerdale then agreed to pay the legal bill.

"We are just waiting for it all to go through and then the toilets will be transferred to the ownership of the town council and will be re-opened," he said.