Residents of Tunbridge Wells have a new reason to be disgusted after the borough council announced a reduction in grass cutting in and around the town.

The Borough Council is to stop mowing the grass in the town’s parks and recreation grounds in a bid to trim thousands of pounds from its budget. The Conservativerun council said the measure would annually save £86,000, but there were concerns about the negative impact it could have on the town’s image.

Critics of the belt tightening, say the measure would leave the picturesque town looking scruffy and unkempt. The council is also being accused of being ignorant of public hygiene. There is also some suggestion that leaving the grass longer is a disguised means of off-setting Icelandic investment losses.

The council maintains that not cutting has bio-diversity merits.

One of the councillors said that apart from saving a lot of money the green spaces could be considered meadows once they were overgrown.