Companies that charge drivers fees for recovering parking ticket debts are operating with an average profit margin of more than 60 per cent, a Government document has disclosed.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) stated that this figure indicates a “market failure”, while the AA branded the margins “disproportionately high”.

Debt recovery agencies are employed by parking operators to pursue payment for unpaid tickets, often adding up to £70 in additional fees per ticket for drivers.

These charges were set to be banned when the then-Conservative government introduced a code of practice in February 2022, but this was withdrawn four months later after a legal challenge by parking companies.

A new consultation document setting out the current Labour Government’s proposed code stated the £70 cap is “likely to be higher than can be reasonably justified” but it is “seeking further evidence”.

It added that recovery agencies have “an average profit margin of approximately 63 per cent”.

This is “comparable to highly innovative companies” despite the businesses involved providing “standard services such as payment plan provision”, according to the document.

It continued: “We therefore do not consider them to be providing significantly innovative services, and as such the high profits may be indicative of these firms having too much control over the market, thereby indicating that there is a market failure.”

Parking operators can take drivers to court if they continue to resist paying for tickets.

The MHCLG said debt recovery agencies would break even with fees of approximately £26 per ticket, if the proportion of those paying was stable.

Jack Cousens, head of roads policy at the AA, said: “The 63 per cent profit margin feels disproportionately high for the services provided.

“This only highlights the need to curb the sector and ensure balance for all.

“There remains an overzealous cohort among some private parking operators where they hand over cases to debt recovery firms for seemingly innocuous charges.”

He added that the ban on debt recovery fees in the original consultation was “the right position” and claimed the latest version “falls short of the mark”.

Steve Gooding, director of motoring research charity the RAC Foundation, said: “The profit margins revealed by the Government help explain why there are now more than 180 private parking firms buying vehicle keeper records from the DVLA so they can send demands to drivers – it’s a huge and profitable business.

“The private parking industry’s failure over time to be more open about its activities is part of the problem and its ongoing reluctance to open its books to official scrutiny shows why ministers must follow through with plans to bring transparency and independence to this sector.”

Recent analysis by the PA news agency and the RAC Foundation found 4.3 million tickets were issued by private companies to UK drivers between April and June.

That was a 24 per cent increase compared with the same period last year.

A BPA spokesman said it “strongly disputes the Government’s profit calculations” and called on it to “publish the methodology behind these figures”.

He continued: “The numbers presented are misleading and fail to reflect the reality of the debt resolution sector.”

He insisted the purpose of debt recovery fees is “not to generate profit but to act as a fair and effective deterrent against deliberate non-payment”.

An MHCLG spokesperson said: “This Government inherited a private parking market that lacks transparency and protection for motorists.

“We share their frustration, which is why our private parking code of practice will drive up standards in the industry and hold parking operators to account.

“We consulted on the current cap on debt recovery fees and will publish our response as soon as possible.”

India and the European Union (EU) are gearing up for the 14th round of free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations in Brussels on Monday, as both sides aim to smoothen out the differences and finalise the deal by the end of the year.Senior officials from India and the 27-member bloc will hold a five-day round of talks, beginning from October 6. An official said the discussions will aim to resolve outstanding issues to help conclude the negotiations at the earliest.Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal recently expressed confidence that the two sides will sign the agreement soon. He is also expected to meet EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic in South Africa later this month to assess the progress, with December set as the deadline to wrap up the talks, PTI reported. The pact seeks to boost two-way commerce and investments.Last month, Sefcovic and European commission agriculture commissioner Christophe Hansen travelled to India to meet Goyal and review developments in the negotiations.The proposed trade pact, revived in June 2022 after an eight-year pause, seeks to boost trade and investment flows between India and the EU. Earlier talks were suspended in 2013 over disagreements on market access.The EU is pressing for steep tariff cuts on automobiles and medical devices, lower taxes on products such as wine, spirits, meat and poultry, and stronger intellectual property protections. For India, the deal could make its exports, including ready-made garments, pharmaceuticals, steel, petroleum products and electrical machinery, more competitive in the European market, according to PTI.Negotiations cover 23 policy areas, including goods and services trade, investment, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, rules of origin, customs and trade facilitation, competition, trade remedies, government procurement, dispute settlement, intellectual property rights, geographical indications and sustainable development.The EU is currently India’s largest trading partner for goods. Bilateral trade reached $136.53 billion in 2024–25, with Indian exports worth $75.85 billion and imports worth $60.68 billion. The bloc accounts for around 17% of India’s total exports, while India makes up 9% of the EU’s global exports.In services, bilateral trade stood at $51.45 billion in 2023.

Vedanta Ltd, led by Anil Agarwal, has postponed the completion of its demerger to March 31, 2026 due to pending approvals from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and government authorities.The company made the announcement in a filing this week.“Given that the conditions precedent in the Scheme, including approval of the National Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai Bench (NCLT) and approvals from certain government authorities are in the process of being completed, the board of the company and the resulting companies…have decided to extend the timeline for fulfilment of the conditions precedent from September 30, 2025 to March 31, 2026,” Vedanta said.This is not the first extension as the deadline was earlier extended from March 31, 2025 to September 30 2025.Once approved, the demerger will allow the company’s different business units to operate as independent entities, PTI reported.Vedanta Resources CEO Deshnee Naidoo had earlier expressed confidence that the demerger of Vedanta’s Indian unit could be done within this financial year, but stressed that her main priority is restructuring the company.The NCLT had postponed the hearing on Vedanta’s demerger plan to October 8 after the ministry of petroleum and natural gas raised concerns over missing disclosures.The company had earlier revised its demerger plan, choosing to retain its base metals business within the parent company. Initially, the mining firm had proposed creating six separate companies: Vedanta Aluminium, Vedanta Oil & Gas, Vedanta Power, Vedanta Steel and Ferrous Materials, Vedanta Base Metals, and Vedanta Ltd, but this plan was later updated, PTI reported.Vedanta Ltd, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources, is a major global player in natural resources, critical minerals, energy, and technology. The company has a global reach, operating in India, South Africa, Namibia, Liberia, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Korea, Taiwan, and Japan, with businesses in oil and gas, zinc, lead, silver, copper, steel, and aluminium.