Minister told to pay advertising charge for cross

Minister told to pay £75 ‘advert’ charge for a wooden cross

A minister has been told he needs to pay £75 to put a wooden cross up outside his church because it constitutes an advertisement.

Paul Nzacahayo was keen to erect a cross outside the Dudley Wood Methodist Church in the West Midlands, which is being converted from an old school building.

When he approached Dudley council about planning permission, he was told that under current legislation a cross was an advert for the Christian faith and so needed to be paid for.

Mr Nzacahayo, superintendent minister at the Overend Methodist Mission, said: “The cross is a symbol of our faith and to say it is an advert is getting the wrong end of the stick completely.”

A council spokesman said: “Crosses are defined as advertisements in the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

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