Parking Charges Frozen

Parking charges in Hertford will be frozen for the next financial year, following a meeting of the District Council's Executive Committee on Tuesday.

Prices for parking in the town will remain at 80p for the first hour and 70p per hour thereafter until April 2012.

The freeze will mean a 4.2% reduction in income for the council. Executive Councillors said they felt it was "the right and sensible thing to do". Their recommendation must now go to Full Council on February 23.

At the meeting, council leader Tony Jackson said he believed the business community and users of town centre car parks – shoppers and workers – would welcome the news. "It would be a sensible move to consider freezing charges next year and we would therefore absorb the costs of the increase in VAT and in inflation. We can afford to do this and to do so in a sustainable way. It would be the right thing to do in these economic times."

And Cllr Michael Tindale, Executive member for finance and resources, said: "Economic development is one of our priorities and that's why we're proposing swallowing the VAT increase and the loss of income."