What a muddle parking has become in Oxford. It is bad enough having two councils in charge. What makes it worse is that the two councils involved, Oxfordshire County Council and Oxford City Council, cannot agree on policy.

While the city council tries to keep motorists out of the city centre, the county is welcoming them with open arms.

From Thursday, all street parking will become free at night and on Sundays.

County council Conservatives will argue that they put the policy of free evening and Sunday parking to the electorate at the May elections, and they were returned with a majority.

The fear is that motorists who might have used park-and-ride in the past or left their cars at home and travelled by bus, will be encouraged to drive to the city.

If everyone decides to do the same, the result will be chaos as drivers meander from street to street looking for that elusive parking space.

Another effect of the Tories' policy, as we have already predicted, is that the use of park-and-ride will drop.

Some dedicated park-and-ride services have already been curtailed, and there are now suggestions that evening security at the sites could be withdrawn.

We need a coherent policy for parking in Oxford, not two councils at loggerheads.