PARKING charges in Dudley are set to rise by ten per cent, council bosses have confirmed.

The price increases were approved by Dudley Council’s cabinet committee on February 12 as part of a £34million package of cuts that will hit council services over the next three years.

Transport chiefs are still working on exactly what the new charges will be; they say the new tariffs will be determined by new pay and display machines which are due to replace 52 outdated machines on car parks across the borough.

Councillor Khurshid Ahmed, Dudley’s cabinet member for transportation, said: "We are looking at around a ten per cent increase on car parking charges this year in line with the agreed budget strategy for 2014/15, which still leaves us as one of the cheapest places to park in the Black Country.”

However - Dudley's Tory leader, Councillor Patrick Harley, hit out at the proposed parking charge increases, saying: “At a time when the economy is rapidly improving - this is not the time to choke off the High Street recovery in Dudley with sky high car parking charges."

He said if the Conservatives seized back control of the council they would look to scrap short stay parking charges altogether.