Councillor wins parking fine notice in Welsh fight

A Gwynedd councillor says he is delighted an operator has agreed to make parking fine notifications available in the Welsh language after a 12-month campaign.

Dyfed Edwards accepted he left his car in a non-parking area at Bangor railway station in November 2010.

But he refused to pay the fine until the notice was issued in Welsh.

In a letter to the councillor, NCP said future notices would be available in Welsh upon written request.

"I am keen for private companies operating in Gwynedd to show respect to Welsh speakers by offering a bilingual service to their Welsh speaking customers," said Mr Edwards.

The Plaid Cymru group leader said he accepted full responsibility for his actions, but felt "in this day and age notification in Welsh should have been sent to me".

The fine notification listed languages customers could receive their notice in, including Polish and Mandarin, but Welsh was not included, he added.

Mr Edwards said: "I find it increasingly frustrating that some private companies choose to ignore the need to offer Welsh speaking clients a Welsh language service.

"If we are to ensure a truly bilingual society then this responsibility rests with everyone - not just the public sector."

In the letter to Mr Edwards, NCP wote: "As a result of you highlighting this specific issue we are now in the final stages of implementing software that will enable us to produce copies of future PCCN's (Parking Contravention Charge Notices) in Welsh upon written request."

NCP has been asked to comment.