A FULL council meeting of the Forest of Dean District Council voted to make a U-turn on imposing parking charges in Mitchel­dean – but campaigners are angry that the final decision will still rest with the ruling Cabinet of five councillors.

In a move that has been seen as a groundbreaking split from the policy of imposing parking charges on council-owned car parks in the Forest, the full council voted on a motion tabled by Cllr Ian Whitburn that asked the Cabinet to remove the charges, initially from Mitcheldean.

The motion was passed, which now means that the Cabinet itself will have to debate the issue.

Cllr Whitburn told the Review: "This was the first time we have really had a chance to vote on the parking charges – apart from the vote on the overall council budget – so this is an important milestone for those of us campaigning againt the charges.

"I think that as the full council have now voted effectively to stop the charges in Mitcheldean, then the Cabinet have a moral and democratic obligation to follow that vote to the letter.

"The ball is now firmly in the Cabinet's court. The pressure is on them now to climb down on this issue- andas fast as possible if our local businesses are to survive this winter."

Kevin Brown, owner of Kevin's Butchers in Mitcheldean, said: "This is really good news for Mitcheldean. From the word go putting on parking charges here were a really bad idea, and pose a serious threat to businesses not just here but wherever they have started parking charges.

"The supermarkets must have been laughing their socks off. They offer free parking after all, so the council betrayed us on that. I hope they take this chance to take out the charges entirely."

However, a spokeswoman for Hands Off Our Towns (HOOT) who have organised protests and petitions against the car park charges issued a stark warning to the Cabinet should they fail to follow the vote and remove the charges.

"As the full council have voted on this issue, for the Cabinet to over rule them is a very serious matter, since it brings into question their democracy. If they fail to U-turn on this then they face a public and media backlash.

"People round here have good memories, especially when they are being bullied by these five councillors who think they can simply ride roughshod over the council, and us."

There was no comment from the Cabinet on the vote and it is not known when they intend to debate the issue.