DESPERATE Somerset Council has revealed plans to introduce 24-hour parking charges in most West Somerset public car parks.

It is also looking at introducing fees in currently free car parks in Minehead, Blue Anchor, Kilve, Nether Stowey, Wheddon Cross, Withypool, and Wiveliscombe.

And on-street parking fees of £1 per hour could be imposed in the centre of Minehead.

Overnight fees are being proposed for car parks which currently are only paid for during the day in Minehead, Dunster, Williton, Watchet, Dulverton, and Porlock.

The Liberal Democrat-run unitary council is trying for a second consecutive year to avoid bankruptcy and plug a £66 million hole in the annual budget it needs to set before next month.

Last year, the unitary authority sold assets, plundered its reserves, and made staff redundant to avoid issuing a section 114 notice, the local government version of bankruptcy, when faced with a £100 million budget black hole.

With fewer assets left to sell-off this year, and having last week made another 550 posts redundant, it is has been given Government permission to increase council tax by 7.5 per cent, half as much again as a national five per cent cap on other councils.

But it still needs to raise more money and next week will start debating proposals for a slew of new car parking charges at a scrutiny committee meeting on Monday (February 24).

If approved, the new charges are likely to be introduced half-way through the 2025-26 financial year and could raise an extra £464,000, and £1.76 million in future years.

A council spokesperson said the measures were aimed at introducing ‘consistency’ across Somerset’s 200-plus council-run car parks.

The spokesperson said the car parks currently had different rates and charging principles which had not been reviewed since the formation of the unitary authority nearly two years ago.

They said the new regime would ensure car parks continued to be completely self-funded to cover staffing, serving and administrating penalty notices, and managing and maintaining them to a high level.

The spokesperson said the new charges would ‘deliver a fairer service for residents, visitors, and service users across Somerset’.

Although legislation prevented car parking being used as a ‘fiscal measure’ to raise revenue, it was possible to use surplus income to subsidise some services usually funded through council tax bills.

The spokesperson said: “Parking significantly contributes to financial performance enabling the provision of other services.

“Implementing a charge for overnight use of the car parks will more evenly spread the financial costs of operating and maintaining the facilities across users.”

A further debate will take place at a council executive meeting two days later on February 26 and if approved in principal a public consultation exercise will then be held.

Somerset executive Cllr Richard Wilkins said: “It is really important we bring fairness and uniformity in charges across the county and in turn the extra income will help ensure the parking service is fully self-financed and can continue to be run, staffed, and maintained properly.”