National Parking Adjudication Service refuse an Adjournment...The plot thickens

A full days hearing has been listed for 3rd October 2006 for my PCN appeals against Sunderland City Council.

I received notification back in August, but expectations were not high after 85 previous PCNs were either cancelled or 'no contested' by the City Council who appeared desperate to avoid any public exposure of their flawed regime.

In a nutshell they had been caught out issuing PCNs where they had no legal right to do so. They had lied to the Department for Transport on such a scale that it makes Jeffrey Archer and Jonathan Aitken look like Ghandi and Mother Theresa.
They had given 'reassurances' that all their signs, lines and Traffic Regulation Orders would be 'correct and in force' by the commencement of DPE on 3rd February 2003. Not only did they not act ... at all ... on the £60,000 Consultants detailed report of their failings, some three years later it still wasn't correct. Over 350 TROs have been adjusted / amended / corrected. They told the DfT that there would be none by Feb 2003!!!

On top of that they issued 75,000 non-compliant PCNs.

They received the NPAS Circular regarding the Bury Judgment highlighting the fact that Local Authorities need check their PCNs back in May 2005. Legal advice came from the Assistant City Solicitor to 'change the PCN wording immediately.' NCP (the contractors) were told on 16th June 2005. They did not alter the PCNs until 30th November 2005 after knowingly issuing over 12,000 non-compliant PCNs.

The next potential batch of my PCNs to go to appeal were suddenly cancelled after the Council got wind of the Aylesbury Vale v Lukha decision. All my Notices of Rejection were non-compliant so my NPAS appeals were dropped.

The crux of the case, as well as the big picture ... Bill of Rights Defence / Lack of Independence and Impartiality of NPAS therefore invoking the Article 6(1) ECHR Defence, was that Sunderland City Council did not have a TRO for the CPZ (Controlled Parking Zone) which meant that the on-street signage was incorrect.

They simply stuck signs up to indicate the boundaries of the CPZ. No consultation. No TRO. In fact they cannot even recall when they erected them!
The legislation is clear and states that a TRO is required for the sign.
A recent NPAS ruling between Green v Sunderland City Council won on this precise point.

However, as the stakes are a lot higher should I win on such a point that on 20th September I received notification that Sunderland had instructed none other than Stephen Sauvain QC to state their case.
NPAS confirmed that this was unprecedented. After all, they bill their adjudications as informal tribunals. No other local authority has instructed a QC for a single parking ticket case.

However, the fact that they had instructed a QC meant that an adjournment would be necessary in order for me to prepare a detailed case and instruct counsel and retain expert witnesses in order to give evidence. The request went in to NPAS.

NPAS declined my request. Not unusual except that Sunderland had stated in a letter to me that they wanted sight of my defence in advance otherwise they would have to insist on an adjournment.

So I rang NPAS. They told me that the Chief Adjudicator had made the decision. Caroline Sheppard, the Chief Adjudicator had made the decision. Caroline Sheppard after the previous telephone incident ( click here to understand how many careers are at stake) stated that " I can assure you that if you decide to lodge an appeal against any or all of the PCNs you are disputing with Sunderland Council the individuals involved in the conversations you overheard will take no part in the adjudication or adminstration of your case.

Seems funny that Ms Sheppard now wishes to deny me an adjournment in order to fully prepare a case against Sunderland's QC.
Seems like we have another David against Goliath struggle.

It would be nice to see the case go ahead on the 3rd as the BBC are running their half hour documentary on the Sunderland / NCP operation which promises to pull no punches.

Let us see if my witness orders against Ms Sheppard, Mr. Barfoot and a number of Sunderland City Council employees are also declined.

Meanwhile, anybody wishing to attend what will be a most illuminating spectacle can contact me by e-mail and I will keep everyone posted of developments. We would like a good crowd present as the argument will also see the independence and impartiality of NPAS exposed, including:

- the financial relationship between the 'independent' adjudicator and Manchester City Council and the involvement of the Council'sTreasurer and NPAS Capital Reserves and where they were held (oh, and by the way, Manchester City Council are only just in the process of changing their PCN s to make them compliant despite the NPAS Circular last year and despite adjudicators finding in favour of the council ... numbers to be released soon)

- the Pension Funds of NPAS employees being held in Tameside Council's Pension Fund. Independent?

- the Birmingham University Report compiled by Professor Raine and referrred to in the NPAS Annual Report was commissioned by NCP ! And Ms Sheppard is also a Birmingham University alumni.

That gives a taster of what is to come but suffice to say that this is the adjudicfation hearing that the adjudicators do not want to hear. Sunderland is the Council that the Department for Transport does not want investigating because it will expose the fact that there were no checks ever conducted and that a Local Authority could simply create a DPE regime on a false premise and fleece the motoring public with impunity ... or so they thought.

Well, let us see how the establishment come together to protect their own and prevent the first major domino from falling. If it does go then be ready for the rest to follow.

The National Parking Adjudication Service are aware that they are not compliant with the European Convention on Human Rights and fall foul of the Article 6(1) point that they are an independent and impartial tribunal. Adjudicators appointed by the Joint Committee comprising of Local Authority members participating in DPE. Funding at the rate of 55p per PCN. Appeals in favour of local authorities despite the MacArthur v Bury ruling. Adjudicators not trained to check PCNs or TROs and other paperwork.

Decriminalised Parking is collapsing around the country and there is no respect at all from the public. It is only a matter of time.