FORMER Cabinet Minister Frank Dobson is backing the Evening Press Stop The Highway Robbery campaign.

The York-born Labour politician, who has a home at Dunnington, signed up to our petition while shopping at Scott's Butchers in Low Petergate, York, where forms are on the counter.

Mr Dobson told the paper he was concerned about the impact of evening charges and restrictions on businesses in the city centre, which he understood were being damaged.

He did not believe the charges had been introduced to help tackle congestion.

"It just seems to me that it has been done simply to raise money," he said. "It isn't anything to do with congestion."

The former Health Secretary, who was a contender to become Mayor of London some years ago, said he had concerns about the inconvenience and safety issues raised by evening restrictions.

Women have complained about the extra dangers posed by having to walk back to edge-of-town car parks late at night to get to their cars because new yellow lines prevent them parking near their places of work.

Mr Dobson stressed that he was not speaking about daytime charges, which he believed had a role in tackling traffic congestion.

Stephen Bailey, the owner of Scott's, said he had made the petition available for customers to sign several weeks ago, and many had done so. "Mr Dobson comes in quite often, about twice a month," he said.

"When he came in recently, I showed him the petition and said: 'Do you want to sign this, or is it too political?'

"He said 'No, I'll sign it, as a Dunnington resident.'"

Mr Bailey claimed that people living outside York were now going elsewhere when they went out on an evening because of the city's new charges.

"I have friends who live at Green Hammerton and they'll go to Harrogate or Knaresborough."

Coun Ann Reid, City of York Council's executive member for planning and transport, was unimpressed by Mr Dobson's comments, and suggested he could better use his time pressing for York to get a better grant from central government.

"If he could persuade his Government to give York a fair deal, we might be able to reduce some of these charges," she said.

Another public meeting about parking charges will be held at 7.30pm on Thursday, August 26, at the Priory Street Community Centre.

Updated: 10:55 Wednesday, August 18, 2004