DARTMOUTH mayor Cllr Rob Lyon has made a rallying call for the town to get behind the town's business improvement district.

It comes as scores of businesses were today facing court action for failing to pay their levy to the Dartmouth BID.

South Hams Council, which is collecting the levy, issued summonses on Monday, February 9, to 103 businesses to attend Plymouth Magist­rates Court over non-paid invoices.

Cllr Lyon said the court action was regrettable but he called on people to start working together for the benefit of the town.

He said he was a 'terrible shame' that so many businesses had to be taken to court but he hoped everyone could move on.

'I'm sad it had to be that way and it won't help anybody,' he said. 'It will just entrench people in their camps even more. But we are where we are.

'The BID won't go away and is here to stay, so we need to get behind it and all work together for the good of the town.

'My view has always been it would be a shame not to support something that could generate more than three-quarters of a million pounds to support the town, provided it was spent wisely.'

Meanwhile, an open forum session with BID leaders on Tuesday saw former chamber of trade chairman Joe Murtagh claim businesses will be finding themselves in court because of a printing error by the BID.

Lower levy payers are having to find an extra £50 on their bills after a slip-up on the BID's business plan.

For more on this story, see this week's Dartmouth Chronicle