Controversial Car Parking Charges Approved

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Fri 30th Jul 2004

On Wednesday 28 July, Labour-controlled Telford & Wrekin Council decided to go ahead with the autumn introduction of car parking charges in Newport and Wellington. Despite intensive opposition from traders and residents, Labour councillors pushed through the scheme by a narrow margin of 27 votes to 24 votes, with one abstention. Charges in the smaller district centres were excluded, but may be introduced later, which makes the situation even more unfair to those included now.

Vic Tonks, leader of the campaign against the charges, said that at the next borough council elections, the group intended to put up candidates against Labour councillors who had supported the scheme. Linda Hodson, LibDem councillor from Dawley, said the council was clearly not listening to the people. "Neither Wellington nor Newport will sustain these charges. Politics should not come into it, but it obviously does." Labour has only one councillor in the places affected, so has been accused of picking on areas where they are not well represented.

Both Newport and Wellington have Liberal Democrat Mayors this year. Councillor Pat Fairclough, Mayor of Wellington, hosted a packed meeting at the local Council Offices to give local residents the chance to air their views about the charges. She presented letters of complaint from the meeting to the Borough Council on Monday 26 July, in time for the Cabinet Meeting which was going to consider the issue later that day. After the decision on Wednesday, Mr Tonks commented "We think it is political discrimination against Wellington and Newport."