Cllr Jeremy Christophers, leader of Teignbridge Council, writes:

There are certain words that carry an incendiary impact. In my opinion ‘theft’ is one of those. So when the Liberal Democrat leader, Gordon Hook, used that word in the chamber to describe the council’s actions, it was greeted with an air of disappointment from councillors of all political backgrounds. The ‘truth’ is another word which should grab the headline on the car parking story. Cllr Hook’s account of the recent full council meeting is misleading the public in the following way.

Cllr Hook used the figures from 2011-2016 to miscalculate the ‘over-vending’ of the car parking machines. What he did not state, is that the machines have been in use for 10 years or more. At the time these machines were installed, he was an executive member in the Lib Dem-run council. We simply inherited this issue which he now seeks to pin on the current administration. If he views this as ‘theft’ now, then it was also ‘theft’ when his administration originally installed the machines.

At the recent council meeting, under questioning from Cllr Hook, I did, as stated in the minutes of the meeting, say that the practice of ‘over-vending’ had also taken place prior to 2011, but this was not reported in the media. We are encouraging people to pay by card, so they can then pay the correct amount. I am pleased to say more people are doing this and we have seen a 25 per cent reduction of ‘over-vended’ proceeds from £65k in 2015/16 to £43k 2016/17. Furthermore, we are also installing pay on foot machines which charge the correct sum.

After the meeting, he went on to make a further statement; that if he was leader of the council he would use the ‘stolen’ proceeds to fund services, for which Teignbridge is not responsible. Bus passes are the responsibility of Devon County Council. I am certain that the public would want us to use the monies raised through ‘over-vending’ on something our council could provide, which is actually beneficial to them and we have. This being, free Sunday parking.

It’s all too easy to forget that the first action the new Conservative administration took in 2011, was to introduce this initiative. This costs the council an estimated £42-£45k per year, but has had a dramatically positive impact on the district, with people taking advantage of this ‘giveaway’ across our district. This in turn, has boosted the social and economic outcomes for local people and the many visitors from neighbouring districts who charge more to park than Teignbridge.

Newton Abbot, in particular has a great atmosphere on Sundays, with people flocking from far and wide. Teignbridge continues to provide great value parking.