PARKING charges that earned the States £3.2m in 2004 do not break monopoly rules, according to the Jersey Competition Regulatory Authority.

The JCRA have rejected a complaint by the Chamber of Commerce, who said a price rise agreed last year was too high, given the fact that the States made a 56% profit on parking in 2004.

But the competition regulator says the price rises – 6.4% for scratchcards and 9% for season tickets – do not represent an abuse of the States position as the only parking supplier.

An article in Chamber Online by Chamber chief executive Andrew Goodyear states: ‘We argued that, as a monopoly provider, the States were abusing their position, and this in turn could negatively impact on many of our members who relied heavily on efficient and economic parking provision in order to compete with out-of-town retailers and the internet.

‘Chamber has received a formal response from the JCRA which states that, following a preliminary assessment, there did not appear to be sufficient evidence at this time to suspect an infringement of the Competition Law.’ Mr Goodyear writes that the group – composed of business leaders – will continue to monitor changes in States price increases, particularly those that break the 2.5% inflation target.