We heard on Tuesday (March 5) that Devon County Council had “recommended not to proceed” with the plan to install pay and display parking meters in Okehampton and the other eight towns in the proposal.

“This will be a great relief to retailers and traders in Devon’s towns, especially here in Okehampton where there was real concern over the impact it would have on business,” said West Devon borough councillor for Okehampton North, George Dexter.

“Many people signed our petition, I’m pleased Devon County have listened. What Devon County should now be doing is to see what steps they can take to build business in our towns, especially for our small independent retailers and traders who are having a very difficult time at the moment.”

There had been plans to stage a protest against the parking meters outside County Hall in Exeter on March 13 – the day on which Devon County Council Cabinet members will ratify the decision – but in light of the news, this will not go ahead now.

In Okehampton, the town council carried out a survey late last year to gauge public opinion on the proposed introduction of parking meters.

The results revealed that the vast majority of residents, businesses and visitors were opposed to the idea. Of 1,186 responses, 1,782 said they oppose the plan with over 1,000 saying that their use of the town centre would change if the parking meters were installed and would either visit the centre less frequently or not visit at all as a result.

The news follows a recent public meeting in Tavistock at which two county councillors pledged to oppose the pay and display parking scheme.

Cllr Philip Sanders (Con, Yelverton Rural) called it “a money-making exercise” by Devon County Council (DCC) and that he was “vehemently” against it. And Cllr Debo Sellis (Con, Tavistock) said the on-street meters would be “detrimental” to the town.

On Tuesday, county council leader John Hart, who will chair next Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting, said: “We are listening to the county councillors who have represented their towns very forcefully. We are listening to the residents and businesses in these towns and to their local councils.

“Many of our towns have parking and congestion issues which need to be tackled but it’s important that any solution has the support of the local community. We are listening to them.”