Westminster council have decided to delay plans to introduce weekend and night-time parking charges in the borough.
The proposals sparked furious reactions from local businesses, churches and the mayor himself who spoke out against introducing parking charges and suggested that the decision was a revenue-based one. Even self-styled queen of shops Mary Portas waded in, calling the charges 'sheer madness'. Westminster claimed that weekend and night-time charges were essential to reduce congestion. Implementation of the parking charges will now be delayed until March next year.
The council, not known for its altruism over parking, won a protracted legal battle earlier this year over motorcycle parking charges while Camden council suggested they may follow Westminster's example by introducing similar charges 'to prevent parking chaos spilling over'.
In an LBC interview in November, Westminster council leader Colin Barrow was grilled by Nick Ferrari over his access to a free parking bay provided by the council.
