A ROW has broken out between the councils of Bury and Tottington over whether water supplies should be treated with fluoride.

Tottington Council has launched a protest over the issue as it wants fluoride but says it cannot have it because of Bury's opposition.

The council claims Bury is the only one of eight authorities in the Bolton Waterworks sub area not willing to have its water supplies treated.

Consequently it has written to its Bury counterpart asking the council to reconsider its decision.

Bury's Health Committee is however recommending that the ban should stay.

The committee decided in April 1963 that fluoride should be added to to the town's drinking water to combat dental troubles among young children.

This was then supported by the town council.

However, just two years later the council threw out its fluoride plan following an anti-fluoride campaign by the now Mayor of Bury, Councillor Earnest Cockayne.

This decision meant that neighbouring areas whose water supply comes through the same pipes could not have fluoride.

Besides Tottington, these areas include Haslingden, Rawtenstall, Ramsbottom, Little Lever and parts of Radcliffe and Whitefield.

Nonetheless, even if Bury reversed its decision it is unlikely that the whole of Tottington will have fluoride as part of the area is supplied from Bolton which has also voted against the treatment in a town referendum.

ONE of Bury's best known landmarks, the South African war memorial in Whitehead Clock Tower Gardens, is to be given a clean up.

The 64-year-old monument crowned by a 10 feet high statue of a cheering soldier commemorates the Lancashire Fusilier's part in the South African campaign.

It once stood in the Market Place, where is was unveiled in March 1905, and has occupied its present site since 1920.

The Operation Springclean Committee recommended a clean up for the memorial.

Now the Town Council Finance Department has agreed to invite quotations for carrying out the job.

IT was second time lucky for the Fusiliers as they delighted the town with a colourful parade.

The regiment, which is on a 10 day tour of the area, should have paraded in Bury on Friday ­— but bad weather made it impossible.

However on Saturday the scarlet tunics and busbies of the Corps of Drums of the 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers were on full show as they took to the streets in front of cheering crowds.