Councillor Duncan Kerr has made a statement concerning the increase in car parking charges in Oswestry.

Speaking from Festival Car park, Oswestry, Cllr Kerr said:

"The Lib Dem Cabinet of Shropshire Council is proposing to increase car park charges by 40% to £2 an hour at this car park in Oswestry and many others in market towns across the County. It's a charge that I fear will be unaffordable for many people leading to even more congested streets as plans for residents parking in the town have been paused since 2022. Amazingly, although some charges will increase in Shrewsbury, the charges at Frankwell Car Park, one of the largest, will be cut by 17% to just £1 an hour.

Shrewsbury already has the best bus and train services in the County, and has seen huge investment by the Council and Government over the last decade including £50M on buying shopping centres; the re-surfacing of Pride Hill in heritage materials; the station gyratory; and £18M on Riverside Park. If this wasn't enough to make the town centre viable, don't forget that Shropshire Council funds Shrewsbury's museum, theatre and a cinema. The contrast with Oswestry is stark. Cost cutting meant that the improvements to Church Street were done with synthetic materials, Llwyn Manison was purchased and rescued by the Town Council and Shropshire Council has never offered to fund Cae Glas park or our museum, theatre or cinema.

To add insult to injury the money raised by Shropshire Council in these new charges will be used to provide a Sunday bus service in Shrewsbury. They seemed to have forgotten that Oswestry has no Sunday bus services and they can't even find the money for a shuttle bus to the station at Gobowen. Oswestry is the second town in Shropshire and it is about time the new administration started to help reduce, rather than increase, the gulf between public investment here and in Shrewsbury. I urge all residents who are concerned about this to go the Council's website, look for current consultations, and give the Council their views."