Welshpool Town Council will be offering use of the town hall for half price to the Royal British Legion for D-Day anniversary commemorations.

As 2024 marks the 80th anniversary of the historic D-day landings in Normandy during the Second World War, the Royal British Legion (RBL) made a request to Welshpool Town Council to use the town hall for a commemoration event with the cost of the room waived.

Discussing the request at a meeting on Wednesday, March 27, councillors expressed concerns over whether offering the hall for free would set a precedent for other groups requesting to have fees waived.

Cllr Dave France said: “Obviously I support the idea of this event but had a question, in terms of waiving the room hire, of any kinds of inconsistency in our policy of waiving the hire from one group and not another.”

Cllr Phil Owen agreed, adding: “I was going to make the same point, as a debate we’ve had quite often now, over sometimes we waiving the cost and other times we not doing so, with no real rhyme or reason other than simply the perception of the worthiness of the organisation or event.

"I believe we need a policy over when we waive the fee and when we don’t, as currently it’s just arbitrary.”

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Events, Planning and Markets Officer Kimberly Wright noted that the RBL request for waiving the fee would mean Welshpool Town Council would be credited with assisting in the event, making it a joint venture between the council and RBL.

Cllr Billy Spencer said: “I agree with comments over precedent, however it’s the 80th anniversary of D-Day, a significant milestone. Should we make an exception for such a big event, and ask how would it look if we didn’t support it?

“This will be them doing something for D-Day in conjunction with town council, taking the pressure off us to organise something. I think members of the public would like us to mark the anniversary.

“If we consider these events and requests on an individual basis, it’s the 80th of D-Day, a one off that every town in the country will likely be organising something for.”

Cllr Alison Davies proposed a compromise in offering a room to the RBL for half price, reducing the cost of the room hire as a means to continue supporting the event. Councillors voted in favour of the proposal.