MPs Urge £197m Debt Write-Off for British Council; Perth Man Asks If His £43 Gas Bill Qualifies
Commons committee suggests wiping the slate clean. Letters from across Perthshire are already on their way to the Public Accounts Committee.
Westminster, where debts are occasionally made to vanish. Photo: DaniKauf, “Westminster palace”, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
The Commons Public Accounts Committee has suggested writing off £197m of debt owed by the British Council, and Perth would like to know where it can apply.
“Hundred and ninety-seven million, gone, just like that,” said a North Muirton man, holding a gas bill for £43.12. “I’m not asking for millions. I’m asking for consistency.”
The Perthetic has been flooded with similar requests, including a library fine from 1998, a disputed bridie tab at a Craigie bakery, and a woman in Letham who owes her sister a Tupperware lid “and has done since the Commonwealth Games”.
Experts point out that the British Council promotes British culture and the English language overseas, which is important work. Perth residents point out that they also promote British culture and the English language, including several words the British Council would not use.
The committee is not expected to consider individual Perth applications, but the bridie tab is said to be “under review”.
The real story: UK politics (BBC News)
Letters to the Editor
The views expressed are those of the reader, and frankly that's on them.
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The Tupperware lid is a matter of principle and I will not be letting it go.
— Agnes M., Craigie, 30 October 2026 -
I have a library fine from 1994. I’m not paying it. I’m applying for a write-off.
— Davie R., North Muirton, 30 October 2026 -
I’m the sister. I want my lid.
— Liz C., Letham, 30 October 2026
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