Today I have had the opportunity to bring an issue to parliament that is of great concern to my constituents. It may not be an issue that is dominating the front pages, like the growing national debt, and it isn’t an issue keeping world leaders awake at night, like the threat of nuclear proliferation, but nevertheless it is a problem that has caused stress and worry for people living in Blaenau Gwent. The issue is that of signage and ticketing in car parks.
I have been contacted by a great many constituents who feel that they have been unfairly issued with fines they cannot afford to pay. It isn’t that they were trying to avoid paying to park their cars, and in a number of cases they have paid the correct amount, but the increasing complexity of the process means that often drivers just get caught out. Car parks have moved on from putting a quid in a meter and a ticket on your windscreen, with an increasing number of car parks using number plate recognition technology and more indigestible rules than an Olympic showjumping event. I am seeking to make signs in car parks easier to read so that drivers know where they stand, or in this case, park.
This is part of a larger issue as to what Labour should be doing while there is so little money to spend. Labour should be looking to champion consumers, making sure that the ordinary man or woman on the street is able to stand up to big businesses when they have been wronged. Ed Miliband has been bold and already established himself in this area by recently condemning the ‘rip-off’ admin charged to pensioners by pension funds.
There are a number of other issues that Labour could take the lead on. The FairFuel campaign to reduce petrol costs has had great resonance across the country, particularly in communities where families rely upon their cars to get to work, take their children to school and pick up the weekly shop. As winter gets closer we should also aim to get ahead of consumer thinking and highlight the ever rising cost of energy bills. Labour’s DECC team have already made great progress in this area by calling for greater competition in the market.
From campaigning to secure the vote, to our introduction of the minimum wage, the Labour party has sought to support fairness for the underdog against the establishment. Today, while families across the country struggle to make ends meet we should be as determined as ever to champion the cause of consumers.
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Nick Smith is member of parliament for Blaenau Gwent and a member of the public accounts committee
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