My daughter came to visit and parked with a visitor's permit. A few hours later, she left to find she had collected a parking ticket.

She'd scratched out the day, the month and the year on her permit but forgotten to write in her vehicle registration number.

That's £60, miss, but just so you realise we are reasonable people, we'll settle for thirty quid if you go quietly.

Nothing unusual here as, for 364 days a year, there are large numbers of visitors to the city who get it wrong and find they have £30 less to spend than they thought.

Maybe they parked with one wheel outside the white lines, maybe they fell into the traps set at the King Alfred car park or maybe parking on Sundays is free where they live and they imagined that it was the same everywhere.

Whatever, they leave the city just a touch aggrieved.

It doesn't have to be like this. New Labour dreams of a Little East Germany here in Brighton and National Car Parks can't believe its luck.

But eventually the park and fine franchise will come round for renewal. I suggest that local businesses take a leaf out of Richard Branson's book, form a not-for-profit consortium and bid to take over the running of all the parking schemes.

They can then develop an enforcement policy which addresses real issues about traffic management but also recognises the need to make the city attractive to visitors.

Greed is not attractive, nor is stupidity. New Labour and NCP have combined to give us both.

-Trevor Pateman, Brighton