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Poet’s Corner

SOMEONE IS TAKING THE P

17-11-2008

Parking

Motorists hoping to support their local stores in Sandwell have just been handed a serious disincentive – the proposal to introduce charges in town centres where parking is currently free. Poet Brendan Hawthorne who lives in one of the areas affected (Wednesbury) wonders who’s taking the “p”.

Someone is taking the p
Removing the free
and proposing a fee
for the privilege
of leaving the run-around
the shoppers’ friend
the ferry to work
unattended on one
of the numerous unkempt
council parking lot blots
It’s time to pay up
by the hour
It’s time to tax
the shoppers
residents
and traders alike
who are left feeling
that they have no say
in what should be
when reading
between the lines
of bureaucracy
Our esteemed leaders
want to add another layer
of governance
a bye-law tax
on the ones
who are guilty of keeping
the shops open
that pay wages
that pay rates
that pay service charges
to the ones
at income generation
The one’s who sit
at the other end
of the council office
who don’t liaise
with the next desk
and only see their bit
not the whole picture
and never look out
from their window
Under these uncertain
commercial skies
the brink of small town existence
and its potential demise
seems probable
To charge for parking now
is mis-timed
It’s a step closer
to the ledge
the thin end
of the wedge
It will force cars
to be parked freely on
residential streets
blocking access
to property
and emergency services
And you wonder
at the convenience
of bail out ventures
when public money
is so wantonly
obscenely
and publicly wasted
on multi-million
non-starters