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Hunt renewed for Seaford attacker, jail for road test impersonator and joy for driver passing 21st time. Phil Mills reports.

Brighton and Hove’s parking policies made national headlines last week.

Under the banner “Motorists |hit by soaring parking ‘tax’” the Sunday Telegraph claimed ‘tariff increases, some of up to 25 per cent’ and loss of free parking spaces through extension of resident parking zones in the city, had netted the council £318,000.

Latest 7 reader Chris Eaton spotted the same article and wrote in: ‘It’s a cash cow, plain and simple.’ What do you think? Email: comment@thelatest.co.uk

The council took another knock, this time from unions reeling from job cuts, for spending £123,000 on a gum removal machine. But the council said the gum problem was so serious it was probably costing us more in lost revenue from visitors turned off the city by the sticky
mess. Council leader Mary Mears said: “I want visitors to be greeted by sparkling clean pavements, not by the unpleasant sight of gum stains.”

The council is also cleaning up the image of Big Issue sellers with the introduction of 20 branded pitches and uniforms for the homeless and vulnerably-housed people who sell them. Big Issue sellers have to sign up to a code of conduct and pitches are monitored so shoppers feel safe.

Meanwhile, the city’s police have warmed up a cold case by renewing inquiries into a vicious seafront assault in July last year, which left a 23-year old Seaford man with nerve damage causing partial permanent paralysis of his left arm.

Two still CCTV images, one of the main suspect and one of a man with him that night, both running from the scene, were issued and police asked anyone recognising them to call 0845 6070 999, quoting 331 of 19/07/09.

A gang of five drug dealers, three from Liverpool and two from Brighton, were sentenced at Hove Crown Court to over 16 years behind bars following a six-week police operation. The gang ran a Whitehawk-based drugs ring for five years.

And 35-year-old Gageen Preet Singh was jailed for impersonating driving test candidates across the South East and ripping off drivers, who paid him to take their tests for him.

In another court case, Sion Jenkins said it was ‘not important to him’ that he lost his £500,000 compensation claim for spending six years in jail for a Hastings murder he was later cleared of. He says he is still focusing on bringing to justice the killer of his foster daughter Billie-Jo 13 years ago.

Claire Morris was lucky to survive an attack by stampeding cows as she walked her dog near Heathfield, three years after police inspector Chris Poole suffered a punctured lung and cracked ribs in a similar attack by cows near Lewes.

Hundreds of would-be police have been told there are no jobs for them as Sussex Police look for £52m savings. The double-dip recession is threatening, according to the financial experts, but there are always stories to brighten the day – Jay Stally hit an incredible hole in one three times in six days at West Hove Golf Course and, while on the subject of driving, congratulations to Suzi Hughes from Worthing who finally passed her driving tests – after 21 years and 21 tests.

Happy and safe motoring Suzi – but watch out for those parking charges in Brighton and Hove.

This entry was posted on Monday, August 23rd, 2010 at 10:39 am and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.