THE NEW BCP Council is vowing to pursue those who don't pay up their Community Infrastructure Levy, the monies paid by developers to pay for new roads schools and community facilities.

Unlike many other councils it says it is prepared to go to court to ensure that those who are due to pay the charge - which came in three years ago - actually pay up.

The council has revealed that in a recent hearing the court found in their favour that the homeowners were not exempt from paying CIL and consequently Liability Orders were issued. This means if the debt remains unpaid, the council can enforce the land charge against the property or secure other means to recover the debt.

CIL's are pursued by a team, said the council, as part of its commitment to the provision of further new housing in the conurbation.

"Despite the majority of residents paying CIL on new developments, there were a number who were unwilling to settle their CIL bills," said a spokesman. "The council engaged with these individuals and in some cases we recovered the debts. In these instances we were unable to secure payment and consequently took legal action to recover the debt and the Council’s full legal costs.

"These cases demonstrate that the council will recover monies due so as to secure the necessary infrastructure to mitigate the impacts of future developments within the wider community and environment."

The Echo understands that other cases are due before the courts within the next few months.