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Clamping ban is a breath of fresh air
ADDING my agreement, as a cabinet minister, to plans to ban wheel clamping on private land was a highlight in a long list of hugely satisfying moments I've experienced since the coalition Government was formed in May.
I am, first and foremost, the MP for Horsham and, taking into consideration, my postbag, emails, phone calls, advice surgeries and the number of people who stop me for a chat, wheel clamping has been the most significant issue for me to get stuck into over the last couple of years (alongside the seemingly never-ending saga of cleanliness at East Surrey Hospital, Redhill, that is).
Since before the general election, I've been feeding the experiences of people at Jengers Mead, Billingshurst, into my many discussions with cabinet colleagues. Local residents and visitors have been unfairly and unscrupulously clamped and the main factors are misleading signage and overzealous, aggressive clampers – with over-the-top release fees added in for good measure.
Frustrating for most, at the very worst this has lead to distraught and intimidated elderly and disabled people and mothers with young children. It's also severely affected local traders as shoppers avoid Jengers Mead and the slightest possibility of finding themselves clamped and unable to remove their car without stumping up 120.
The ban will be introduced in November's Freedom Bill and should, if all goes well, come in to effect early next year. It will stipulate that private car parks will still be able to charge motorists a fee, using ticket machines but that they won't be able to clamp, tow or immobilise in any other way.
Car park owners will have to sign up to a strict code, ensure their signage is clear and that their fees are reasonable.
Crucially, there will be a new right of appeal to an independent tribunal which will have the power to quash unfair charges.
Over the last two years or so, the clampers at Jengers Mead have showed no discretion – they clamped someone who'd pulled up to deal with a sudden nosebleed, for example; the signs remain misleading and, in many people's minds, at 120, in a Sussex village, the release fee remains exorbitant.
So, this decision is like a breath of fresh air; a healthy dose of common sense.
It's hugely satisfying to be part of making real changes, that will make a difference to many people's daily lives and livelihoods. In short, it is the right outcome to a very sorry local and national saga.
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Weather for Horsham
Thursday 09 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: -1 C to 3 C
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Wind direction: North east
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Sunny spells
Temperature: -7 C to 2 C
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