Canterbury City Council has pulled its funding for Christmas lights across the district.

The authority said it could no longer justify paying for the festive illuminations in Canterbury city centre amid "severe cuts in government funding".

Whitstable will receive a one-off contribution of £15,000 to pay for this year’s seasonal displays, while Herne Bay – which hit headlines last year for having “the country’s worst Christmas tree” – will get a grant of £5,000.

But after this year, all funding will be halted in a move that is expected to save the council £56,000 in equipment costs, maintenance, electricity and insurance.

All the festoon lighting in Canterbury will be taken down, but the fixing brackets will remain in place in case they can be used in future.

The council offered Canterbury City Partnership a one-off contribution of £10,000 to take over the management and maintenance of the city’s lights, but chairman Bob Jones declined.

He said: “We have been having a conversation with the council about this, but did not feel this was a liability we could take on.

“Our resources have been taken up with how to create a sustainable city through the Business Improvement District scheme in which businesses come together to put money into city centre projects.

“Through that, we may be able to one day have improved Christmas lights.

“But right now it is with enormous reluctance that we find ourselves in this situation. It just goes to show how public funds are in increasingly short supply.”

In the coastal towns, the council's economy team approached businesses about the possibility of providing lights in a different way.

In Herne Bay, a consortium including Herne Bay in Bloom, Beach Creative, the Bay Promo Team and Herne Bay Town Partners is working on a new festive lighting scheme, and will take over management of the existing festoon lighting.

Elsewhere in Tankerton, businesses have sourced solar-powered Christmas trees that will be used to decorate the main street.

Previous festive lighting in Whitstable featured motifs on lampposts, but the council said these were no longer in working order and expensive to maintain.

The authority is working with Save Whitstable Shops to have brackets fitted on lampposts and shopfronts, which will be used to fly flags and street dressing during the summer at the request of traders.

There will also be small pre-lit Christmas trees during the festive season, which will be managed by traders.

Council leader Cllr John Gilbey said: "It was inevitable that this day would come. Christmas lights were a nice thing to do when we had money, but now they are not of sufficient quality to make a difference and there is simply no cash to invest in new displays.

"Instead of persisting with something sub-standard, the only option left is to stop doing it.

"Much has been said in the media and elsewhere about cuts in council funding. This is one very real example of its impact. As the money goes down, we are going to have to take more difficult decisions not to do things, in order to protect important frontline services and the services we are required to provide by law.

"It's not an easy message, but I think people need to be prepared to see more of the things they like disappearing in the years ahead."