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News and Comment May 2014

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5 May (Part 1) - Beware of candidates bearing gifts

TweetLast Monday, exactly a week ago, Bexley council announced its latest round of generosity towards the electorate. Its car parks would be free on the May Day holiday, today.

Councillor Kerry Allon went on Twitter to announce “We are doing it again”.

Without doing enough research I asked him if this would be a repeat of Easter Saturday when Bexley council’s ‘generosity’ in Bexleyheath turned out to be one of Ian Payne’s Business Improvement District ‘come to Broadway’ promotions and not council funded at all.


Carpark Carpark CarparkKerry told me “it doesn’t take a genius” to work out the answer which is his way of saying today’s free parking is Bexley council funded. And his comment about Bexley council “doing it again” is absolutely correct, for free parking on Bank Holidays is the norm, as these photographs of the only council car park in Mr. Allon’s newly adopted Lesnes ward, show.

It seems more likely than not that the publicity for free Bank Holiday parking has more to do with there being an election due than any new found streak of generosity. Bexley council has doubled most parking charges and tripled some since 2010 and now they hope to fool the gullible that they are giving some of their revenues back.

The photos suggest they are not giving very much away. Gayton Road car park has been empty so far today.

 

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