Standing against the Fresh Air tax
Leeds City Council is proposing to introduce car parking charges at two public parks: in Otley Chevin Forest Park and Golden Acre Park, near Bramhope. Introducing parking charges would make these parks less accessible to all, particularly the most disadvantaged in our communities.
Leeds City Council initially made similar proposals in late 2022 covering several parks across the city. Liberal Democrats campaigned against the charges, arguing that fresh air should be free to all residents across the city. Following the public outcry the council was forced into a u-turn, but is now bringing the proposal back targeted at residents in the north west of the district.
The Liberal Democrats are calling for these new proposals to be dropped, the revenue raised from parking charges at these two sites will not come close to covering the city council's budget shortfall. However, they will unfairly penalise residents and could potentially lead to parking chaos on surrounding roads as visitors look to avoid the charges.
As well as signing our petition below we would strongly encourage residents and visitors to respond to the council's consultations for parking charges at Otley Chevin Forest Park (here) and Golden Acre Park (here).
Opposing parking charges at public parks
The Liberal Democrats call for Leeds City Council to halt plans to introduce parking charges at public parks. Doing so would amount to a clean air tax levied on those who don't have the luxury of living within walking distance of green spaces.