Coventry City Council made more than £3million from parking last year...

A councillor has claimed the profit is a return to normal trends



Coventry City Council made more than £3million in profits from parking in the last year - an increase of nearly £1million on the previous year.

But both the RAC and the AA have criticised these profits, claiming they leave motorists with less money to spend.

The group representing councils hit back meanwhile, saying that these profits are being invested in fixing roads and boosting local economies.

Coventry’s total profit - of £3.1million - was up by two-fifths compared to the £2.2m in profit the council made in 2016/17, according to new figures.

It has also increased by nearly half compared to the £2.1million made in 2008/09.

The council spent £3.3million on employees and running costs for providing parking in 2017/18.

It raked in £6.4million in income - including £5.8million in sales, fees and charges.

Generally the cost to the council for providing parking has fallen slightly over the ten years for which data is available, while the amount of income from sales, charges and fees has risen - leading to the increase in profits.

Across Warwickshire, councils made £5.4million in profits, a fall from £5.9million in 2016/17.

However, the councils have seen profits rise by half since 2008/09, when they made £3.6million.

Overall councils in Warwickshire spent £7million on providing parking and brought in £12.4million in income.

Cllr Jayne Innes said: "The total profit this year was up from 2016/17, but if you look at the year before that, the figure was £3.9million.

"This year isn't particularly higher, but rather a return to the normal trend."

Cllr Innes revealed that the reason behind the lower profits last year was that the council elected to write off several "historic bad debts".

And while the council did not confirm what the £3.1million profit will be spent on, the councillor stressed that more than that amount is spent on highways each year.

This amount is simply obscene. And in the same breath the council wonder why our high Streets are dying.

And while the council did not confirm what the £3.1million profit will be spent on, the councillor stressed that more than that amount is spent on highways each year.

I always thought road tax payed for the up keep of our highway /roads so why has this changed and where is that money going even though I have read many times from public replies it goes to foreign aid if so WHY?