BPA ACTIVITIES MONTHLY ROUND-UP
Kelvin Reynolds provides a staunch defence for parking enforcement, arguing that we are all part of the same capitalist society, where supply and demand is king
Stealing TIME
Retailers operate this way, so why shouldn’t
people who supply parking spaces do the same?
n the April edition of Parking News, Belinda Webb’s opinion piece was a fascinating read, highlighting as it did the unfair attacks made by those who should know better, on civil enforcement offi cers, so-called ticket targets and parking enforcement in general. In fact, this is just a diversion of attention away from the unwillingness to tackle the real problem of the decline in high streets up and down the country. Parking enforcement is a soft target. No one likes congestion and not fi nding anywhere to park, and yet no one likes effective parking management and enforcement either. Ironic isn’t it? Civil enforcement offi cers (CEO) in England and Wales, together with their counterparts in Scotland and Northern Ireland are on a hiding to nothing – they can’t be doing right for doing wrong. Keeping traffi c moving and parking spaces turning over means that they are hurrying people along and the traders don’t like that. Allowing someone ‘just 10 mins’ is to sanction law breaking. Is it ok to park where you shouldn’t so long as it’s only for 10 minutes? Is it ok to not pay for the fi rst 10 minutes when you should? What if everyone was allowed to do that? Is it ok to steal just two biscuits out of the packet, on the basis that you are just having a quick cup of tea and you don’t need the rest of the packet?
I
Stick to the rules So, what can a CEO do, but apply common sense, move people on or issue penalty charge notices when people do not comply with the rules, which are there for everyone’s benefi t.
16 JUNE 2013
www.britishparking.co.uk
Most motorists drive and park reasonably and responsibly in accordance with the rules. They avoid parking where they shouldn’t and they pay for parking when they should. If perchance the CEO gets it wrong on occasion, a combination of unusual circumstances and human error means this is inevitable, then adjudication services are there for the motorist to appeal. It’s called democracy and justice and the UK has been doing it for more years than most. Speaking of democracy and justice,
everyone who seeks to abuse or assault a CEO while they are doing their job and carrying out this valuable service deserves to feel the full weight of the law. The BPA has campaigned for better protection of CEOs, and we are pleased that the Sentencing Council agreed with us, issuing guidelines in 2011 to the effect that ‘…an assault on a CEO would be charged as common assault
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