Political perspective bpa Fair trade Yvonne Fovargue, MP for Makerfield, Wigan, explains why she is looking forward to the changes the Parking (Code of Conduct) Bill promises An MPs postbag is always a good indicator of what is irking the public and, at the moment, I am seeing a surge in the letters I am getting about unfair car parking practices. Some look to me like scams: parking signs that are hard to read or falsely imply that parking is free; fines issued for entering a car park for a few seconds or being held up in a queue to get out, or for mis-keying one digit of the car registration number; parking notices that mimic a police ticket or court document; threats to use bailiffs to repossess cars for non-payment; and so on. I even recall hearing of someone who died while they were out shopping. They received a parking charge, and their relations were chased by a parking company for the fine! All too often, the attitude of the parking operator seems to be shockingly unhelpful and inflexible. That is until you realise that, for some, the car park works as a kind of honey pot, trapping the unwary and naive. It is then that the sleights of hand and bullying seem to make more sense. We all accept that parking operators are entitled to protect vehicle access to private land and to charge motorists for the privilege of parking. But where the business model has Every motorist should be able to rest easy that they are entering into a contract that is reasonable, transparent and involves a consistent process more to do with catching people out and aggressively pursuing them for payment, then something has to change. This is why I have been supporting Sir Greg Knights Parking (Code of Conduct) Bill, which is about to complete its passage through the House of Commons with all-party support. The centrepiece of the proposal is a new code of conduct that will be mandatory in the industry. The code is yet to be finalised and agreed, but will cover a wide range of issues, including specifications for signage, ticket standardisation, the establishment of a grace period for those leaving and entering car parks, and a requirement to operate a transparent and fair appeals process. I am pleased that the BPA is in favour of regulation. I am encouraged by the fact that it appears to be just as concerned as my constituents are in getting rid of the rogue operators that taint the industry. Thats the way it should be. Every motorist using a car park should be able to rest easy that they are entering into a contract that is reasonable, transparent and involves a consistent process. We should all have an interest in ensuring that this is so. Britishparking.co.uk 17 PNDec18 pp16-17 Political Perspective.indd 17 26/11/2018 16:17