Councillors are mounting a challenge to plans to axe free parking in three North Somerset towns.

North Somerset councillors Tim Snaden and Luke Smith have “called-in” the plans to introduce parking charges in Clevedon, Nailsea, and Portishead. The plans have promoted concern for independent shops in Clevedon and for the future of Portishead Open Air Pool.

Last month, the committee of nine executive councillors who head North Somerset Council approved the plans. But now the two councillors are arguing that any decision should be made by a full meeting of all 50 North Somerset councillors.

Mr Snaden (Portishead North, Portishead Independents) said: “For this sort of thing, I find it is very unfair to have it on the executive only and we are trying to push it to go into full council, which is fairer because it is such a large thing. It is affecting so many people.”

The plans will now go before a council scrutiny panel on Monday November 11, where the panel will be able to raise its view of the decision with the executive. Mr Snaden added that the scrutiny panel may also ask the executive to reconsider their decision.

In a statement on his Facebook page, Mr Smith (Clevedon West, Conservative) said: “It’s troubling that only nine councillors could vote on this strategy, which is why I’m working with colleagues to ‘call it’ in.”

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “The parking management strategy only serves to make money, not to tackle parking pressures, support businesses with turnover or mitigate problem parking. I’m astounded the executive has ignored scrutiny’s recommendation to leave Hill Road (HAB) unchanged and this site should be withdrawn.

“There is a complete lack of policy detail, outcomes, and monitoring. The adopted scheme is all cost and no benefit. The only scheme that I’ve seen, worse than the parking management strategy is Clevedon seafront.”

The charges will be rolled out in stages, with the first introduced in February. Not all car parks will have parking charges introduced. In most car parks affected, it will cost £1 to park for an hour, £1.50 to park for two hours, £2.50 for three hours, and £3.50 for all day. But parking at some locations — including Portishead’s lake grounds and Clevedon’s Hill Road — will cost more.

The charges come as North Somerset Council warns it is in a “financial emergency” and risks having to issue a section 114 notice if it cannot balance its budget. At the meeting on October 16 where the council executive voted to bring in the charges, council leader Mike Bell said: “We cannot justify subsidising parking when we are having to cut care services for vulnerable adults and children.”

North Somerset Council expects to make £1.05m a year from the charges, although operating costs and paying off borrowing to bring the relevant infrastructure in means it would only keep £479k of this as profit each year.

The call in will be considered by North Somerset Council’s placemaking, economy, and planning policy scrutiny panel at their meeting in Weston-super-Mare Town Hall at 2pm on Monday November 11.