Beryl The Peril: OAP Council Tax Rebel Ready For Jail
THERE’S nothing more annoying to the powers-that-be than a vulnerable little old lady who decides to make a stand. It’s a PR disaster.
In the case of Beryl Pearce, who is refusing to pay her council tax bill on principle, the fact that she spent the Second World War working as an RAF nursing orderly, gives her story even more pinch.
The 85-year-old Mrs Pearce, who lives in Band D-rated sheltered accommodation in Andover, Hampshire, tells a preliminary hearing: “With the prisons being full – there’s a lot of us doing this – they have a problem and will have to think about what they’re doing. It’s a case of heat or eat – where’s the justice in that? I have worked since I was 14 and I have served my country. I have nursed in old people’s homes since the war.”
Pearce now owes £71 plus legal fees of £15 but despite being well able to pay the charge, she is determined to continue her stand, saying: “I’m not worried about prison. I have been through worse things in my life”.
After the magistrate’s hearing, a Test Valley Borough Council spokesman groans: “If the bill is not paid we may have to take further action. A custodial sentence is a last resort and we would hope to resolve it before it got to that stage.”
If they do send her down, expect a media storm. Beryl Pearce – the British Paris Hilton…
Posted: 20th, June 2007 | In: Money Comments (2) | TrackBack | Permalink
