A PARISH council which received electricity bills totalling almost £3,000 for a tiny meeting room have described the situation as ridiculous.

Doris Jones, chairman of Middleton St George Parish Council, said that despite protests the bigbills had kept coming.

The £3,000-worth of estimated bills cover an eight month period for electricity used by a rarely-used light and heater in the council's conference room.

Coun Jones said: "It is a tiny room and couldn't possibly use up that amount of electricity. It's ridiculous.

"If they would only come out and read the meter they would see for themselves. It is just bone idleness on their part."

Council clerk Mike Taylor, who handles the payments, said he had repeatedly complained to npower and sent it meter readings and a record of payments.

A dramatic change in the bills, which used to average about £40 per quarter, began last October when npower charged £1,191 for a three month period.

Following a letter from the parish council, this was dropped to £65.

However, four months later another bill arrived for more than £600.

Two further bills have arrived in the past five months asking for £472 and £625.

A letter of apology from the company in June explained that somebody would come out and read the meter, but to date no one has contacted the council to organise it.

At a parish council meeting this week, it was decided that Mr Taylor would once again write to npower to register another complaint about the over-estimation of the bills.

Speaking to The Northern Echo yesterday a spokesperson for npower said the bills were so high because the boardroom was classified as a business.

"After changing our computer system a while ago we don't have a consumption history and so we make estimates on the basis that it is a business," she said.

"Other small businesses in the region have been affected in a similar way.

"We need to get two consecutive meter readings and then the estimates will be more realistic in the future."

She agreed to speak to Mr Taylor and organise a date when readings would be taken.