A FINANCIAL assessment should be carried out into the feasibility of decriminalising parking in West Somerset.

Members of the overview and scrutiny committee decided to call on the ruling cabinet to investigate the issue after hearing no such study had ever been carried out by the council.

They had asked the authority's internal auditors to investigate the issue of decriminalised parking enforcement (DPE), whereby penalty notices for parking offences would be issued by and paid to the local authority rather than through a court fine.

The police would retain responsibility for 'moving traffic offences' and for offences that could lead to points being put on a driver's licence - for example, parking on the zigzags before a pedestrian crossing.

In a report to Monday's meeting of the overview and scrutiny committee, auditors Deloitte Touche concluded that there was simply not enough information available to make a decision on the issue.

They said they could find no evidence of any financial analysis being carried out, despite a widely held belief within the authority that DPE was not a viable option.

Dulverton councillors Keith Ross and Mike Gammon told the committee it was imperative DPE was introduced in their town as soon as possible.

"This has been to-ing and fro-ing all these years. It's to the detriment of Dulverton if we don't do it," Cllr Gammon said.

Cllr Ross criticised the authority for spending £50,000 on last year's car parking strategy when he had already conducted a similar exercise himself at no cost to the council.

"I did it one sheet of A4," he told the committee.

He said DPE was operating "very successfully" in Taunton Deane and said the community ultimately benefited as the income from fines went straight into the local authority's coffers.

"In Minehead there is so much free parking on the streets that car parks, such as Clanville are 70 to 80 per cent empty.

"We shouldn't be talking about doubling car parking charges in car parks.

"We should be trying to get people into them in the first place.

"There are simple solutions to this and we should be trying to move it forward."

He said there was "complete inertia" at officer level over the issue of DPE and questioned how officers could claim it was not a viable option when no study had been done.

But cabinet member and portfolio holder for car parking Cllr Barbara Child remained adamant that this was not the time to introduce DPE in the district.

She told the committee: "I am well aware that a study has to be done at some stage, but it was felt to be inappropriate to do anything until we have got a Minehead solution set in stone.

"Hopefully, it will go ahead when we see something on paper. I realise Dulverton is a tricky problem."

She said the car parking strategy adopted by the council at the end of last year would tackle many of Minehead's current problems, but admitted there was a real danger funding could run out before all the planned schemes were implemented.

The strategy included the controversial hike in car parking charges, charging motorists to park on certain roads, improving signs and providing secure parking for bicycles and motorbikes.

At the time of approving the strategy, cabinet members also agreed that the possibility of DPE should be investigated.

However, according to the latest audit report, no report was in the pipeline and there were no plans to introduce DPE in the foreseeable future.

But the auditors did conclude that "a significant amount of work" had been done on the implications of introducing DPE in West Somerset.

They found that "key bodies", such as the police, cabinet members and traffic wardens had all been asked for their views on the subject.

The report concluded: "Our review highlighted the fact there is still work to do within the council to agree the viability of DPE.

"Despite research, we were unable to determine whether a feasibility study or financial analysis had been carried out for DPE in West Somerset.

"In order for DPE to be seriously considered, further work is required, including a feasibility study and financial analysis of predicted outcomes."