A proposal for a 100% levy on car parking charges has been welcomed by the Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Ken Skates.
During a Senedd debate on Tuesday, Labour AM – Jenny Rathbone – proposed a 100% levy on the first two hours of car parking in Cardiff; a proposal that she claimed could raise a billion pounds for walking and cycling routes.
Responding, the Cabinet Secretary said it was a “really interesting suggestion”.
He went on to confirm that “the idea of a levy is certainly one that's worth further consideration”.
But Welsh Conservatives said the idea would cost jobs and damage the Welsh economy.
Shadow Economy Secretary, Russell George, said:
“Town and City centres are the focal point of the regional economy, and a tax on shoppers would be disastrous for footfall and jobs.
“This terrible idea betrays a reckless idealism at the heart of Welsh Labour that could wreck the economy if unchallenged.
“Labour’s instinct is to tax first and think about the consequences later.
“The Cabinet Secretary should rule this out once and for all.
“We know for a fact that high streets and town centres are already struggling because of a lack of free parking, so slapping a levy on car parks would make things much worse.”
Shadow Local Government Cabinet Secretary, Janet Finch-Saunders, said:
“The Welsh Government is effectively laying down the gauntlet to local authorities, encouraging them to slap a huge tax on shoppers.
“It’s enormously irresponsible, and Jenny Rathbone’s proposals would damage town centres right across Wales if it was rolled out.
“You only have to look at the growth of out-of-town shopping sites, where free parking is the norm.
“I understand the need to encourage more people to use public transport and active modes of transport – but not at the expense of the viability of our high streets and the many jobs associated.”
Notes to Editors:
Taken from the Record of Proceedings, Tuesday 28th February:
http://record.assembly.wales/Plenary/4908#C64678
(17:49:15)
Jenny Rathbone:
If you're in search of money for implementing these excellent schemes, I wondered whether you might consider the additional funding that could be raised by having a levy on city-centre car parking, because in Cardiff alone I have estimated that a 100 per cent levy on a two-hour charge on all the city centre parking could raise £1 billion. You could introduce an awful lot of walking and cycling routes with that sort of money. So, I'd be very interested to know what consideration you've given to this sort of thing, because we have the roads already—we don't need to build more roads, we just need to use them for different purposes. We need to use dedicated routes for walking and cycling.
Ken Skates:
I stated just previously that I think it's absolutely essential that local authorities also play a role in increasing the amount of resource that can be made available for active travel. I think it's a really interesting suggestion that you've made about having a levy on car parking. The Welsh Government doesn't have a monopoly on ideas and what we're looking for from local authorities as partners, working individually or together, is good ideas that will challenge and also deliver game-changing proposals that will increase levels of physical activity and bring about a healthier nation. I think that the idea of a levy is certainly one that's worth further consideration.