´óÏó´«Ã½

Campaigners have rallied against a charity trying to charge motorists up to £5 per day for parking on land it pays just £7 a year to rent.

The RSPB has appealed against a council decision to prevent pay and display meters being installed at South Stack on Holy Island.

The charity claims the fees are necessary to fund the yearly £250,000 cost of protecting the nature reserve.

More than 6,000 people have signed a petition against the parking charges.

The online petition, lead by Lisa Hooton, describes the charity as a "corporate monstrosity" for "exploiting" the beauty spot.

"This RSPB charge would stop poor people from visiting it," Ms Hooton, of Llanddeusant, said.

Councillors argued that if the charges were introduced motorists would park on narrow roads nearby to avoid them, which would pose a safety hazard.

The cliffs are breeding grounds for guillemots, razorbills and puffins during springtime.

Councillor Shaun Redmond, a member of the planning committee, said: "The arrogance of the RSPB is astonishing.

"The elected council have twice said 'no', yet still [the RSPB] are trying to bulldoze these charges through," he said.

He also said charity had promised in 2003 that the land, which is leased from Anglesey Council, would remain free of charge.

But the charity says it has "listened" to local feedback and that an earlier plan for a £20 annual concession rate for Holyhead residents will be extended all over Anglesey.

Previously, the RSPB set out a daily rate of £5 during the peak season and £2.50 for off-peak but a new tiered pricing structure has seasonal variations of £2 an hour in summer and £1.50 in winter.

Lewis James, RSPB Cymru's head of reserves, said: "To fund part of the costs of maintaining this important site, we are proposing introducing parking fees. After listening to local concerns we will be trialling a concession scheme.

"We do appreciate these changes are not popular with everyone, but no-one can deny the importance of South Stack Cliffs as a special place where people across the world can explore, relax and discover just how vulnerable our wildlife is in Wales and that protecting this comes with a cost."

If the planning inspectorate decides that Anglesey Council has acted improperly in refusing the application, the authority could be liable to pay thousands of pounds.

A spokesperson from Anglesey Council said: "The RSPB is responsible for maintaining the site and due to the size and variety of South Stack the costs and responsibilities are substantial. In the face of ongoing budgetary cuts, we as an authority must focus primarily on statutory services. We believe that our agreement with RSPB is fair."