Tories steamroller through their on-street parking plans
The Conservative administration at County Hall plan to steamroller through their plans to charge for on-street parking throughout Surrey, just one week after they voted to ignore over 26,000 signatures on the e-petition to scrap them.
Events are set to unfold in three meetings arranged more like a West End farce than a sensible decision making process:
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On Wednesday 18 May the Environment & Transport Select Committee is meeting to discussing the findings of the on-street parking working group. This working group were not allowed to discuss whether the plan should go ahead, just the details of the plan.
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At the same time, just down the corridor, the Cabinet Member for Transport plans to approve the purchase of parking meters for the scheme, without waiting to hear the views of the Environment & Transport Select Committee on the findings of the on-street parking working group.
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The plans for on-street parking in Elmbridge and Reigate & Banstead will then be up for approval by the all-Conservative Cabinet at a meeting next week, when they will also discuss petitions against these proposals.
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However the Cabinet will not have the benefit of the views of the Environment & Transport Select Committee on these plans, because the working group were also not allowed to discuss the plans for Elmbridge or Reigate & Banstead, as these plans had already been put out for consultation before the working group started its work.
Cllr Hazel Watson, the Liberal Democrat Leader of the Opposition on Surrey County Council said: "The way the Conservatives running Surrey are pushing these plans through shows how empty their promises to listen really are. There is still not a proper business plan for the proposals, they are ill conceived, rushed and deeply unpopular among Surrey residents and businesses. The Conservative administration seem to be pushing ahead with these plans to save face, rather than admit they are wrong and back down on their ill-conceived plans".