When you gotta go, you gotta pay

The cost of a call of nature in Barrytown, on the West Coast, has incensed a Westport woman who was asked to pay before her grandchildren could use a tavern toilet.

Maggie Journee says the Barrytown Tavern publican asked her to pay 50c for each of her three grandchildren to use the toilets when they passed through on their way to Greymouth.

"I didn't pay it. I had no money on me," she says. "I think it's disgusting.

"I was quite appalled by her [the publican's] attitude - that she had the gumption to mention it in the first place."

Barrytown does not have any public toilets. The nearest are about 20km away in Punakaiki .

Barrytown Tavern publican Sally McFetrich says the 50c charge for people other than pub patrons was introduced recently to recover costs from people who stopped only to use the toilets. "We are going through so much toilet paper."

All three of Maggie Journee's grandchildren were allowed to use the toilet without paying.

The president of the Buller Hospitality Association, Kevin Storer, says an establishment is within its rights to charge for use of toilet facilities.

"We [the association] have no set policy," he says.

"If they feel they are being used, it's fair enough to cover costs."

Mr Storer suggests that the tavern could apply to the local council for help with the upkeep of the toilets as it is being "environmentally friendly."

- NZPA