Test Valley’s Tories have broken their election promise to freeze parking charges. The picture below is taken from an election address delivered across Alamein ward only a year ago by Cllrs North, Brook and Whiteley.

Barely a year later they have quietly dropped this promise and allowed the leadership of the council to raise parking charges to help balance the books. Meanwhile they hold over £76 million in reserves and spend a staggering £1.3 million on councillors and their meetings.

The only murmur of dissent came from Cllr North who was quickly told to shut up. The other two have failed to comment on this disgraceful deceipt. I have tried to follow the decision process and found the original recommendation by the council’s cabinet was not taken to full council as originally planned. Nor was it discussed by the council’s scrutiny committee (where Cllr North as vice chairman cancelled the meeting when it could have been raised). It was postponed a number of times until finally sneaked through without the usual fanfare of press releases we have come to expect from the council leader and his cronies.

Notices have appeared in all the council car parks less than a month before the increases are due to come in to force and details are hidden away on the council’s website where it takes time and effort to find them. Full details of the charges are available here New Parking charges