A slew of local businesses have expressed their concern this week over Pembrokeshire County Council’s proposals to allow overnight motorhome and campervan parking across some of the county’s car parks.
The ‘Pembs Stop’ trial areas, available for up to two nights, will operate all year-round from this summer at £10 a night. Four car parks - Goodwick Moor; Narberth’s Townsmoor; Pembroke Dock’s Western Way; and the prime North Beach facility in Tenby.
The Local Authority has stressed that the trial scheme is not intended to create ‘campsites’ - but businesses in the area who run such campsites and touring caravan parks have rightly asked questions as to how such a scheme will be monitored, and likely to place an additional burden on existing services, with many such users using public toilets to dispose of their waste, at a time when Pembrokeshire Council have been touting closing such public conveniences across the locality.
It has also been highlighted that the scheme will also put the County Council in direct competition with businesses in an already ‘saturated market’ - and will of course bring into question ethically, whether the Authority will look upon certain future planning applications for such campsites and holiday parks in a different light, if indeed this is just seen as a money making exercise to boost the Council coffers.
It seems more to be a case of if you can’t beat them join them, as the Council’s promised purge on clamping down on ‘wild camping’ across Pembrokeshire, when the country came out of lockdown, proved to be nothing more than a pathetic PR campaign, as despite signs being erected in beauty spots and on residential streets stating ‘no overnight motor caravans’ between 8pm to 7am - the inept officers running the Civil Parking Enforcement department neglected to send out traffic wardens between these times to police it, with the workforce starting at 8am and clocking off at 6pm!
Signs are still prominent as you enter North Beach car park, clearly stating ‘No Overnight Camping’.
“Ho-de-Ho!" - another ill thought out plan - you just couldn’t make it up campers!