Question
I thank my noble friend the Minister for her response. Can she assure me that the Government will clamp down on the use of car parking as a means of revenue-raising for local authorities?
Answer
I thank it is worth offering your Lordships a little context in responding to my noble friend’s Question. Local authorities’ total income and net profits from parking more than doubled under the previous Administration and councils are still making net profits. We also know that there is public concern. The Transport Select Committee said in a report published last year:
“There is a deep-rooted … perception that local authorities view parking enforcement as a cash cow”.
All independent reports show that parking is affecting high streets and local businesses. Therefore, I am very pleased to be able to confirm to my noble friend today that the Government have just completed a consultation
on new measures to tackle this problem, and are considering those responses before announcing what action they are going to take.