SO let's get this straight. Drivers who leave their vehicles in a York car park between 9pm and 8am are now liable for a 10p charge.

Yet anyone who flouts the charge will not be fined. And a parking attendant who issues a ticket to someone failing to pay and display could be disciplined.

Confused? You will be if you are a motorist in York.

It makes no sense, unless you take the cynical view. Then the logic becomes infallible. This nominal, ignore-me charge is a way of sneaking in higher, compulsory parking fees further down the road.

Councillors insist there are no plans to increase the tariff. Then why bother bringing in the 10p charge at all? Unless the council is minded to impose real round-the-clock parking charges, this is a meaningless and wasteful exercise.

It does no favours to the city or its council. York businesses and social groups are still reeling from the introduction of car parking charges up to 9pm.

And today businesses demanded that parking charges be reduced as part of a number of changes to keep city centre trade buoyant.

Flying in the face of this, councillors seem ready to inflict further damage on the retail heart of York by making it the only city of its type to impose 24-hour parking charges.

The clandestine way in which this is being introduced is disgraceful, and will undermine trust in our rulers.

When the council argues that the 10p charge is the best way to avoid red tape, they really mean it is the best way to avoid consultation.

It is a clumsy attempt to side-step a public backlash and will badly backfire.

Updated: 10:13 Monday, March 15, 2004