'£180-a-year fee penalises Richmond Park's poorer visitors'

Ministers were accused today of imposing a £180-a-year stealth tax on users of Richmond Park.

The Tories rejected the Government's claim that poorer people would not be priced out of the Royal Park by new parking charges of £1 an hour.

They said the most regular visitors to the park would pay £780 a year, and a "typical" user of the heritage site faces a £180 bill.

Culture minister Margaret Hodge gave the go-ahead for the fees, opposed by thousands of local residents, saying that visitors on low incomes would not be "penalised".

She used a study commissioned by the Royal Parks to argue that a "disproportionate" number driving to the park are from higher socio-economic groups.

But shadow London minister Justine Greening tore into the "cynical and selective analysis", saying the study's details showed that almost half of those driving to the park are working- or lower middle-class.

The Tories have launched a review into the fees system, due to be introduced within months.