Villagers in Denholme came face-to-face with the people who pulled the plug on an appeal over a controversial waste site.

Bradford council's group planning manager Keith Stones and Shipley planning committee chairman Councillor Eileen Sinclair were grilled by a packed Mechanics Institute about the decision, made before Christmas, to pull out of the appeal into Buck Park Quarry.

Residents and members of Denholme town council and Denholme Residents Action Group (DRAG) were left fuming when the council pulled out of the public inquiry.

Mr Stones told locals that the council had been advised by its barristers to pull out because it did not have a sufficiently watertight legal case.

He also informed residents that Humberside company Wastewise will submit a second application this week. He said: "The council was in a real dilemma and this decision wasn't taken lightly, but it would have been irresponsible to proceed because we have a duty to the tax payer."

Shipley planning subcommittee refused an application for the tip last July. Wastewise, which wants to develop a waste site with a capacity for 2.4 million cubic metres of waste, appealed against the decision.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.