A sharp rise in rates bills is on the way for householders in the parish of German.

At a meeting last night, commissioners voted to add 11p in the pound to the general rate, which was set at 81p in the pound.

The board has blamed the rise on the transfer of services from central government to local authorities from this April.

A separate waste disposal charge for German ratepayers is also going up.

The per-household fee will rise by ?5 to ?100, while the refuse rate will increase to 50p in the pound.

That will mean an average rise for households of between ?15 and ?20 per year.

Commissioners say that's mainly due to rising charges facing the authority at the incinerator.