RESIDENTS say they feel “badly let down” by the decision to instruct councillors to rethink the refusal of planning permission for a quarry near their homes.

The planning committee at West Dunbartonshire Council (WDC) agreed last month, by a 5-4 vote, to refuse permission for the extension of Sheephill Quarry near Milton.

The committee also agreed to grant a Review of Minerals Permission (ROMP) to modernise the terms and conditions under which the quarry operates.

But the Reporter revealed last week that council chief executive Joyce White has used her powers under the authority’s standing orders to refer the committee’s decision to a full council meeting to be reconsidered.

The ruling means the application will go before all 22 West Dunbartonshire councillors on March 3.

Councillor Jonathan McColl previously told the Reporter the matter had been referred to the full council because of the financial implications of the committee’s decision.

He said WDC could lose out on a seven-figure sum as a result of the refusal to grant permission for the extension.

Milton Hill resident Brian Mooney, who attended the planning committee’s meeting in January, said: “I feel badly let down by the planning officers and council chief executive for ignoring the decision of their own planning committee.

“I am frustrated that the council continuously seems to follow a preferred path which is not the due process.

"It seems to be an attempt to avoid responsibility.

“The chief executive seems to me to be holding a gun to councillors’ heads.

“I have lost faith in the council. This puts the councillors in a difficult situation.”

Section 20 (a) (iii) of the council’s standing orders states that a decision of the council made within the last six months can be altered, deleted or rescinded “where, as a matter of urgency, having regard to the potential loss of life, risk of substantial economic loss to the council or any third party (including potential loss or material underutilisation of funds or resources not available at the time of the Decision of Council), it is deemed by the Chief Executive that the matter ought to be reconsidered by the Council.”

 A spokesperson for WDC said: “The decision on the Sheephill Quarry extension and Review of Minerals Permission (ROMP) will be discussed at  council on March 3.”