email received 16th March
Thank you for your e-mail.
Firstly may I give you a synopsis of the history of Civil Parking Enforcement in Powys.
At the Board meeting on the 15th July 2008, Cllr G.T.Evans, the then portfolio holder, presented a paper on the Adoption of Civil Parking Enforcement in Powys. This was as a result of the Council being told in no uncertain circumstances by Dyfed/Powys Police that they would be relinquishing their responsibility for on-street parking from 1st April 2011. As a result the Board made the decision to go down the route of Civil Parking Enforcement. Can you imagine the chaos that would have ensued in places like Hay-on-Wye during the tourist season without any form of on-street parking management?
I took on the portfolio for Highways and Transport on the 18th May 2010. On the 27th July, I presented a paper to the Board asking for approval to submit an application to the then Welsh Assembly Government, setting out how the Authority would use its powers.In that report it stated that "The environmental benefits of adopting CPE powers will arise from an improvement in parking enforcement, reducing traffic delays on-street and ensuring parking capacity off-street. Local control will help to prevent the abuse of Traffic Regulation Orders put in place by the Council and will improve the monitoring of disabled parking facilities." This approval was granted by Board, (Incidentally your local member, Cllr Gareth Ratcliffe was one of the two Conservative party members on the Board at that time), and consequently CPE was adopted as of the 1st April 2011.
Originally the plan was to review how CPE was working after one year and make amendments as necessary. After a lot of public interest in CPE, especially from the Hay-on-Wye area, I made the decision on the 1st July 2011, two weeks before Cllr Ratcliffe's motion to Council, to commence the review straight away. Which I did. That review has been on-going since.
I met with you and Cllr Ratcliffe on the 11th October, which you most rightly state, where you presented your proposals for Hay-on-Wye, which I received and gave you my assurance that they would be taken into consideration as part of the review. As a matter of fact the question of a Resident's Parking Permit had not been considered prior to that.
EDITOR'S NOTE
(It is perhaps appropriate to note that Powys County Council (Prohibition and Restiction of Waiting and Loading and Parking Places)(Civil Enforcement and Consolidation Order 2011) the basis of the council's adoption of Civil Parking Enforcement on April 1st 2011 states
[Page 30 section 4 CONDITIONS AS TO PERMITS AND CERTIFICATES]
Classes of Vehicles for which permits are applicable
78. Subject to the provisions of this Order, permits may be issued to classes of vehicles being Passnger Vehicles, Light Goods Vehicles, Motor Cycles and Disabled Persons’ vehicles.
Use of parking Permits and Dispensation Certificates
79. A Parking Permit or Dispensation Certificate shall only be valid for use in a Parking Place on a road as identified on the Parking Permit and specified on the Plans.
There are similarly allowances for Parking "Dispensation Certificates" {page 28 section 76 (a.) & (b.). )
Unfortunately since then due to a problem with resource, (not money as you state in your e-mail), the review has not progressed as well as I would have wanted.
EDITOR'S NOTE
Money has before now, or the lack of it, been the excuse offered! I quote from an email received from Councillor Hopkins dated 29th January 2012 “Unfortunately due to lack of resource this is not progressing as quickly as I would have liked and I haven't any money in my budget to bring in any outside help.”
I told you at our meeting that I would use your study to influence the review, which I have. I also told you that any changes would be County wide and not area specific, although various anomalies would be rectified.
As far as your request for a Resident's parking permit, I apologise if no one responded to you, but seeing as we don't currently have a Resident's Parking Scheme, I don't see how you could have expected to receive an application form for one!
EDITOR's NOTE
Powys County Council (Prohibition and Restiction of Waiting and Loading and Parking Places)(Civil Enforcement and Consolidation Order 2011) states
[Page 30 section 4 CONDITIONS AS TO PERMITS AND CERTIFICATES]
Entitlement to and application for Parking Permits
80. Any person who is the Owner of a vehicle of the class specified may apply to the Council for the issue of a Parking Permit in respect of that vehicle and any such application shall be made on a form issued by and obtainable from the Council and shall include the particulars and information trequired by such a form to be supplied.
I have today received in very rough draft form, from my officer, a policy for taking car parking management forward. Obviously this isn't going to be considered during the lifetime of this Council, so it will be the responsibility of the new administration to implement if they see fit.
From my own point of view, I have supported your proposed changes to the parking arrangements in Hay-on-Wye and the introduction of some form of County wide resident's parking scheme, but that doesn't mean that whoever takes over the Cabinet portfolio after the elections will be of the same mind.
Kind Regards,
Geraint
Cllr Geraint G Hopkins
(Cabinet member for Environment and Regulation)
email forwarded to all Powys County Councillors
From Cllr Geraint Hopkins, Cabinet Member for Environment and Regulation - Fw: Review of Civil Parking Enforcement
Members,
You are all aware that on the 1st April 2011 the Authority took over responsibility for on-street traffic management from the Dyfed/Powys police. At that time I stated that we would review how it was working and any changes that may be required in April 2012.
In July of last year I said I would bring the review forward six months in order for a new policy to be developed and implemented and the consequent new Traffic Regulation Orders published this April.
Unfortunately due to a shortage of resource this hasn't happened as I had planned.
EDITOR'S NOTE
See above, the Order allowed for Residents' Parking Permits, I applied for one!
I and my Head of Service are now being lobbied by some members for short term solutions to parking problems to be implemented before the forth coming election.
EDITOR'S NOTE
That is just a bit rich! Councillors' responsibilities are first and foremost to their electorate and of course, secondly to the county as a whole. There is no evidence of councillor short-termism, they are merely looking after the interests of those they represent, as they were elected to do!
I have only today received a very rough draft of a policy to take CPE forward. It would be impossible to get this document in any sort of shape to take to Cabinet before the election.
EDITOR'S NOTE
It's not that we don't believe you, it would however be useful to see the rough draft.
I do not believe it would be fair or equitable to all Councillors, or the areas they represent across Powys, to try and attempt ad hoc adjustments to parking in certain towns at this time.
It is therefore my intention to defer any decision on the future policy for on or off street parking until after the election. This will allow the policy to be developed in a timely, thorough manner and implemented by the new Cabinet member, whoever that may be!
Regards,GeraintCllr Geraint G Hopkins
(Cabinet member for Environment and Regulation)
EDITOR'S NOTE
I think that email speaks for itself - procrastination, ineptitude and obfuscation are the first things that come to mind!
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