A PUBLICAN says he's losing thousands of pounds after jobsworth councillors removed his signs because they broke road rules.

Tim Young, 51, claims the signs bring droves of customers into his country pup, which helps ease financial woes amid the cost-of-living crisis.

Tim said he placed the two boards, which advertised the Farmer's Arms' opening hours and Thursday fish and chip night, in a hedgerow beside a main highway.

The chalked signs then encouraged people to turn into the Somerset pub, and Tim said he'd seen an influx of customers as a result.

But he was left stunned when officers pulled the signs down and brought them back to the pub, saying they were breaching highways laws.

So, the persistent pub landlord put them back out late last week – only for the officers to pull them down again, but this time not return them.

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Tim has now hit out at his local council for interfering with his attempts to increase trade.

He told Wales Online: "Three pubs around us have closed. We are literally the last pub standing.

"We are desperately trying to keep afloat and keep going, but not aided by Somerset County Council Highways who won't even talk to us."

Tim said the cost-of-living crisis had hit the pub hard, adding: "Our electric has doubled and everything else has gone up too – even your beef, pork and chicken for the Sunday roasts.

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"Cooking oil has doubled in cost, beers and ales have gone up by several pounds a cask, and there's only so much you can pass on to the customer because they're suffering as well."

He continued: "People come in when they see our signs. This is a tourist area, people don't know there's a pub here, so when they see a sign for 'pub next left', people come in off the road.

"It's very annoying. The council needs to understand that businesses that employ people need help – they can't just take our signs and not give them back."

A spokesperson for Somerset County Council told WalesOnline: "We have been in contact with the business owner to explain that the signs in question are not permitted under highway legislation which is why they were removed.

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"We do understand however the importance of being able to advertise and we’ve had constructive discussions about where the signs can be legally and safely placed.

"The signs are available for collection and we will be arranging this with the owner."

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