Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what role the Government plays in the setting of municipal parking fines for (a) off-street and (b) on-street parking in England outside London.

Local authorities are empowered by law to decide on appropriate parking arrangements, within the legal framework provided by the Traffic Management Act 2004 (TMA).

In England (excluding Greater London), penalty charges are set by enforcement authorities under the TMA. They must accord with guidelines set by the Secretary of State for Transport in schedule 3 of the Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Approved Devices, Charging Guidelines and General Provisions) (England) Regulations 2022.

Guidelines on Levels of Charges set out in the 2022 Regulations provide two different penalty bands for Local Authorities to choose from, and requires Local Authorities under each band to issue penalties at different rates depending on the seriousness of the contravention. These are: Band 1 (£60 for higher contraventions and £40 for lower contraventions) and Band 2 (£70 for higher contraventions and £50 for lower contraventions).