The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald is claiming victory after councillors scrapped plans to increase parking charges.

The paper had been campaigning against proposals to charge a minimum of £4 a day in Devizes and increasing the hourly rate from 35p to 60p after the first two hours.

Chairman of the local pressure group Devizes Guardians, Councillor Tony Duck, said: "The important thing is that between the Gazette and ourselves we raised public awareness of local issues, in this case the proposed hikes in parking charges, which, if they had gone through, would have damaged the town very badly.

"The volume of letter generated by the revelations in the Gazette is clear evidence of the awareness local people now have, thanks to the Gazette."

Town councillor Noel Woolrych said: "This is a victory for common sense which might not have come to pass had it not been for the Gazette bringing the facts to the notice of local people."

The chairman of the Trust For Devizes, Jeff Ody, said: "Any rise in parking costs is to be deplored. Parking availability is a means of attracting trade to the town. The council's policy should be turned on its head and we should aggressively promote parking in Devizes as being user-friendly.

"It is greatly to the credit of the Gazette and its readers for supporting the campaign to make the council think again."

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