Authority says it will 'not be bullied over tip'

A local authority has said it will not be "bullied, cajoled or brought to heel" over its withdrawal from contributing to a rubbish tip in the north of the Isle of Man.

Bride Commissioners previously stated that it could no longer afford to pay its £65,000 ratepayers’ contribution to the Northern Civic Amenity Site (NCAS).

Following the withdrawal of this funding, the NCAS joint committee gave the Department of Infrastructure (DOI) notice to terminate the tip’s operating contract.

A local authority said a recent letter from the committee stating it wanted to clear up any "misinformation" over the situation represented "political sabotage".

The board, made of representatives of the Ramsey, Ballaugh, Lezayre, Garff, Andreas, Jurby - and previously Bride - local authorities, took over operation of the site from the Department of Infrastructure in 2017.

In the document, the board said that Bride originally expressed dissatisfaction with the service’s cost in 2023.

A number of options subsequently put forward were not agreeable to the rest of the committee and in September that year they were rejected, and after that the Bride authority stopped sending representatives to meetings, the committee said.

In its letter, the committee said that Bride wanted to contribute less to the site, but retain the ‘"benefit" of high commercial rates so its residents paid less.

The committee said Bride’s general rates for residents were low due to a "high proportion" of commercial rates from the sand and gravel quarry in the area.

It argued that if this quarry ceased operation Bride’s contribution would in fact be lowered, because its value would decrease and the other members would have to cover the loss.

Bride Commissioners said there were "factual inaccuracies" in the initial letter and "threatening" to get involved in parish affairs whilst "boasting" about it to the government was "tantamount" to "political sabotage".

The local authority also said that whilst part of the NCAS, it spent 85% of its budget on waste.

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