Ho, ho, hopes for free parking in Wolverhampton at Christmas

The plan was revealed after South Staffordshire MP Gavin Williamson said he was putting pressure on Wolverhampton council to give shoppers the incentive to come into the city throughout December – helping traders in their most important period of the year.

Despite Wolverhampton not being his constituency, Mr Williamson said he wrote to council managing director Keith Ireland because many of his residents had raised concerns with him.

He said: "Many of my constituents use Wolverhampton city centre but many of them are getting increasingly attracted to centres such as Merry Hill, Telford and Birmingham. I think Wolverhampton is missing out.

"Christmas is make or break for many of them which is why I urge Wolverhampton council to back this idea.

"Many businesses in Wolverhampton employ people from South Staffordshire and the success of Wolverhampton city centre has a positive impact on many residents in South Staffordshire.

"Many people complain that they are put off from shopping because of parking prices and instead use the internet to do much of their Christmas shop. With free parking there would be no excuse not to use our fantastic businesses that we have close to our local area."

But Councillor Roger Lawrence, Wolverhampton council's leader, has defended the authority's stance on parking, saying that last year 270 spaces on one car park were made free and that the council is doing everything it can to keep costs down.

He said: "We work closely with partners, including Wolverhampton's newly launched business improvement district (BID), to ensure that festive shoppers and local businesses enjoy the benefits of free parking in Wolverhampton city centre in the run-up to Christmas.

"Last year, Fold Street car park was free each Sunday throughout December and every Wednesday for late night shopping. We also had a free parking offer on selected days such as the Christmas lights switch-on.

"We'll be looking to do the same this year."

Fold Street costs 60p for an hour's parking, £1 for two hours, then £2 for three hours.

Councillor Lawrence added: "And it's also worth remembering that, despite the huge financial challenges we face, we have kept parking costs down for local people so that we are more than competitive with other places in our region.

"Given that two-thirds of the city centre's car parks are privately owned, we also work closely with the BID and partners to ensure that our offer is complementary to the incentives promoted by private car park owners."