BPA IN ACTION
Kelvin Reynolds introduces ‘BPA in action’ – the new-look column that is replacing Technical Focus. This monthly column will review issues relating to BPA schemes, the special interest groups and regional groups
How does ‘protecting freedom’ become a ‘charter for the selfi sh motorist’?
The Freedoms Bill in a nutshell
The Protection of Freedoms Bill will have a wide-reaching effect on the parking and enforcement industries. Here are some of the main rulings of the Bill: ● A ban on clamping and towing away on private land ‘without lawful authority’; ● The introduction of keeper liability in respect of ticketing; ● Vehicles can be relocated but at no charge to the motorist; and ● The police will be given new powers to remove vehicles from private land.
And so the government has published its long-awaited Bill to protect our freedom. For the parking and traffi c management sector, T e Protection of Freedoms Bill could be the exact opposite. My reading of it suggests it should be called ‘T e
Unintended Consequences Bill.’ Let’s remember that most
people just get on with their lives in a reasonable way; don’t park when they shouldn’t and pay for it when they should, and with due regards for everyone else. T ere is a real risk that this
Bill will provide a charter for selfi sh drivers everywhere and the freedom of ordinary law-
abiding citizens will be severely diminished. Property owners will be unable to protect their land from selfi sh motorists, local councils and businesses employed to detect misuse and abuse of Blue Badge concessions will have their investigatory powers restricted or removed and the use of ANPR and CCTV will come in for even greater scrutiny.
MISTAKEN IDENTITY
FOOTING THE BILL
In a surprise move, Norman Baker MP has announced that the government is making it easier for councils in England to tackle pavement parking and stop it causing obstruction. Baker said vehicles parked
on pavements can cause problems for people in wheelchairs or with visual impairments, and those with pushchairs. He has written to councils, prompting them to
14 MARCH 2011
use their powers to prevent parking on the pavement where it is a problem. So what’s new? Local
councils have had the power to regulate parking on the footway for years, but, with the exception of Greater London, few have done so. T is time round councils in England can make the traffi c regulation orders, and are now free to use these signs, which previously required
special authorisation to be used outside London. For some councils this
will be a boon; for others it will be a challenge. With a blanket approval of signs the government is encouraging a more confusing situation, made more costly because traffi c regulation orders are needed in every case. Scotland is considering a
countrywide ban on footway parking too, and the BPA is in dialogue with Scottish MSPs and offi cials about their plans.
The government says that ticketing is a viable alternative to clamping and, indeed, it would be if landowners and law-abiding motorists enjoyed the same benefi ts and protections afforded to the management of parking on public roads; namely owner liability and independent adjudication. The government has listened in part to our lobbying for parking tickets issued on private land to really provide an alternative if clamping is outlawed. But it has only gone part of the way. The current drafting of the Protection of Freedoms Bill has opted for ‘keeper liability’, instead of ‘owner liability’. This is a subtle but important difference, offering erring motorists a loophole. The Bill also excludes situations where ANPR or camera enforcement is used, saying that it will only apply where the ticket is issued directly to the vehicle or driver of the vehicle.
www.britishparking.co.uk
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