A TINY council has bared its teeth at the American president for his controversial decision to opt-out from the Kyoto agreement on anti-pollution measures.

Pateley Bridge Town Council, which represents just 2,000 people in Nidderdale, near Harrogate, North Yorkshire, has launched a head-to-head battle with the US (population 274,520,000) over President Bush's decision to stop reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

The letter of protest has been sent via Britain's American Ambassador and is the council's first foray into the minefield of foreign affairs.

The letter was sparked by town mayor Stan Beer, a 49-year-old ambulance driver, who said: "When I spoke to people in our community, they were very much opposed to what President Bush has done on such an important environmental issue."

Councillors voted overwhelmingly to send the letter which says: "You may wonder why we have chosen to write on this issue when, as a town council, we are usually concerned with more mundane matters, such as grass cutting and potholes in the road.

"We were dismayed to hear the news that President Bush had abandoned the Kyoto protocol. This sends a message out that America is prepared to sacrifice the future of the planet to foster selfish internal industrial interests."

Council clerk John Leggett said of the letter: "It's certainly a first for the council. I've never been asked to rebuke a US president before."

The area's reputation for speaking its mind was underlined by a parish council in the Nidderdale Area, in 1968. Then, Grewelthorpe councillors wrote to President Kosygin at the Kremlin, calling on an immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from Czechoslovakia.

They are still awaiting a reply.