A CITY councillor has accused the county council of treating the residents of Oxford with "total contempt" ahead of a public meeting on Tuesday to discuss proposals to introduce charges for parking permits.

Gill Sanders has described Oxfordshire County Council's public consultation about plans to charge people living in certain areas of Oxford to park their cars as "a sop".

But the county council insisted it would listen to what people had to say.

The county is proposing to make residents pay £40 a year for each of the first two permits issued in most residents' parking zones. A three-car family could find itself with a £160 bill.

Ms Sanders's comments come just three days before county council leader Keith Mitchell and cabinet member for highways David Robertso meet with residents to discuss the proposals at Oxford Town Hall.

She said: "What is the purpose of the meeting? How can a one-hour meeting with a very limited time for questions and comments from the public be of any use? In addition, if what is said will have no additional standing why is the meeting being held?

"Is it merely a sop to pretend that the Tory-controlled county council have been listening to the concerns of the residents of Oxford?

"Is it something that they are legally bound to do before finally promoting the traffic order? A meeting to consult with residents of Oxford should have been held long before the county got to this stage.

"This is no real consultation. The county have treated the residents of Oxford with total contempt and disregard."

One in five Oxford residents (5,000 people) responded to a county council questionnaire to gauge people's opinions on the issue.

The results are due to be released at a county council meeting on Monday and the overwhelming majority are expected to show strong opposition to the proposal.

Mr Robertson said the consultation was not a foregone conclusion from the start and insisted the county council would take on board the views of Oxford residents.

He said: "Why would the county council spend money on a consultation if it was not going to listen to what is going to be said?

"We took advice on the consultation and the best method of consulting with a wide range of people. There would have been no point in having a public meeting where people were just shouting "we don't want parking charges".

"The best way is to give information to them, so they have time to digest it and then come back to us with their comments.

"I have found the process very useful, there has been some useful positive feedback and that will be taken into account in the final decision process."

The meeting "to discuss the proposal to charge for parking permits in Oxford" will be held at Oxford Town Hall in St Aldate's between 7.30pm and 8.30pm on Tuesday evening.

The first item on the agenda is the county council "response to misconceptions about the proposal".

The public will then be able to ask questions about the proposal and finally there will be an exploration of ways to reduce pressure on residents' parking.

Mr Robertson added: "The range of questions is not that wide and an hour should be an ample length of time to deal with them all as long as people ask things in a sensible positive way.

"If people are coming along just to shout abuse then there is not much point in it."