As loyal readers know, councils are using parking charges to supplement their income.
I am pleased to see that this fact has now been confirmed by the RAC Foundation, which has stated that parking charges are providing huge cash surpluses for some English councils.
Oddly enough Westminster City Council disputed many of the figures, but said it would work with motorists to reduce fines.
LOL!
I am gemused to see that my own council of Brighton and Hove came in sixth with £14.4m.
The total profit represented a £54m increase on the surplus from 2010-11 and only 52 of the councils reported a deficit on their 2011-12 parking operations.
Transport minister Norman Baker
said:
All very laudable, but as we all know transport fines and indeed tranport taxes are not ring fenced in reality."The law is quite clear. Councils should not be pricing their parking in order to make a profit.
Any monies raised from parking in excess of the cost of administration has to go back to transport purposes which can be dealing with pot holes, improved road management or can be investing in public transport to encourage people to free up the roads."
Ker Farking Ching!
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This will not surprise anyone at all; we all know that Nanny has been finding more and more ways of getting around the "No rise in council tax(rip off tax)policy."
ReplyDeleteWhen the criminal justice system is used as little more than an extension to HMRC, the criminal justice system is brought into dis-repute, in my opinion.
Other ways Nanny has found to circumvent the no rip off tax rise policy:-
A) Charging extra for things that were included in the previous year's rip off tax.....In Wokingham, green waste. Now an extra £60 per year.
B) Charging for access to those that like to call themselves officers.....In Wokingham, one now needs to pay to see a planning officer for basic, pre planning advice; this was always free and even today, is given without "responsibility, legal enforceability nor anything else." Basically the same cavaet as asking the bloke down the pub!
The parking ticket I'd bought blew over on the dashboard as I shut the car door. I refused to pay the fine and got a lengthy reply from Council Nanny thanking me for my letter "challenging the issue of the...(PCN)." (actually I hadn't challenged its issue since I realise that some cheapskates will use old parking tickets) .
ReplyDeleteNanny goes on to explain that since this was my first offence and "it was possible to confirm athat the ticket you have sent in was indeed the one inside the car" (that would be because I'd bought a farking ticket), she will magnanamously cancel the PCN but warns me that in future "any challenge is likely to receive a different response."
Well, I've got news for Gateshead Council's Parking Services Transport Strategy Nanny - it doesn't stop being a travesty of justice not to mention sharp bloody practice on the part of a public servant to fine someone who has bought a ticket and whose intention to display said ticket was thwarted by God having a fart, because it's happened a second time. I will refuse if it happens again and I'll fight your prissy threat with its implication that I'm trying to pull a fast one.
In fact, in view of yesterday's news reports, and while my dander is up I might well respond to Nanny's missive.
jay
...aah, that feels better - have a nice Monday, Mrs PSTS
ReplyDeleteAnd while we are having a go at council rip-offs,I have to pay council tax of comfortably(?)over £2,000 to Canterbury City Council for a house on an unadopted unmadeup road with no council maintenance and no street lighting. What value!
ReplyDelete