A ROW has flared up between Herefordshire Council and Cradley Parish Council over the cost of last year's elections.

Both councils held ballots at the same time and Herefordshire Council has invoiced the parish council for £703 for its share of the cost.

Parish council clerk Pat Courtney said members believed they were being charged too much and were withholding part of the payment.

She said that in a combined election the parish council was only liable for the cost of the ballot papers. Other facilities, such as clerks and voting rooms, should be covered by Herefordshire Council.

The parish council has handed over £211, which it believes is the right amount.

Steve Oram, registration services manager for Herefordshire Council, said the Representation of the People Act 1983 permits the authority to charge for any election costs incurred on behalf of parish councils.

He said that during the 1997 election, Malvern Hills District Council chose not to enforce this charge but Herefordshire Council took the opposite view.

Mr Oram has written to the parish council saying that if the outstanding balance is not paid the county treasurer would "take steps to recover this outstanding amount". County treasurer Ian Hyson said that legal action was an absolute last resort and that the unitary authority had not been "on the ball" in communicating the new charging system.

The parish councils at Mathon and Colwall have also been invoiced for election expenses, despite the fact that their seats were uncontested and no ballot was held. Mr Hyson said that even if no ballot took place, expenses were incurred through the election process and that it seemed fair to ask the taxpayers to cover the costs.