The petition of the residents of Audlem, Cheshire in the Eddisbury County constituency,
Declares their opposition to the introduction of parking charges to public car parks in the village, and the coterminous reduction in its on-street parking capacity, pursuant to a change.org petition of 1,808 signatures opposing the same; further that the petitioners believe that such measures would threaten the vibrancy of Audlem as a countryside business, tourism, events and infrastructure hub for residents and visitors, and reduce access for vulnerable service users in a rural area which is readily accessible only by private car and one regular bus service.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to ensure that such proposals are only developed and deliberated on following rigorous and renewed local public and economic consultation, having due regard to Government policies supporting rural high streets, services, businesses, communities, and healthcare, amongst others.—[Presented by Edward Timpson, Official Report, 13 December 2023; Vol. 742, c. 961.]
[P002889]
Observations from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (Jacob Young):
In line with the Government’s position on localism, parking is the responsibility of local authorities, and it is for them to determine what is appropriate in their own area.
However, in 2015, the then Department for Communities and Local Government published statutory guidance describing how local residents can petition to initiate a formal review of parking policies in their area by their council, with councillors then voting on the action to be taken. In the plan for drivers published in October, the Government set out plans to increase awareness of the guidance and expand its scope to other traffic contraventions. The right to challenge parking policies will remain.