Chips are down for mobile caterer (From Gazette & Herald)

Chips are down for mobile caterer

THE chips are down for a North Yorkshire mobile caterer, who is at loggerheads with his local council over where he can park his van.

Bob McCarthy swapped spanners for sandwiches when he gave up a job as a technician at Chapman's motor dealers, Pickering, in June last year, after he was diagnosed with diabetes, and set up his own business, McMunch Mobile Catering, so his wife, Michelle, could take over when he was ill.

When trade began to wane at Thornton Road Industrial Estate, Pickering, Mr McCarthy asked Ryedale District Council if he could re-site his van in a lay-by on the busy A169 near the Thornton-le-Dale junction.

But he was told by Paul Crossley, principal environmental health officer, that it was designated a prohibited street under the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982, which prohibits street trading on certain highways, including lay-bys.

The mobile caterer was frustrated after council officials refused to give him a reason why he could not trade in the lay-by or suggest sites he could use.

Mr McCarthy then started trading from Helmsley market place on Friday and Saturday evenings - but says he now feels victimised because the council has taken exception to this as well.

"I've been selling kebabs, chips and burgers. It's gone down well with locals of all ages; they thought it was absolutely brilliant because there's nowhere normally open at that time to buy food. There really is a market there. I've actually earned a living over the past two weekends," said Mr McCarthy.

"Now commercial services have said they have received a complaint about litter and noise. I put a bin out and pick all the rubbish up, and people aren't any more rowdy than usual - if they are, I won't serve them.

"If they had it their way I'd been trading from a back road between Slingsby and Salton that only gets four cars a day."

Commercial services manager Phil Long said they had asked Mr McCarthy to write to them to submit a formal application for a concession on the site, because otherwise he would be trading on land owned by the council without permission.

Mr McCarthy said he would submit the proposal and trade on a road at the top of the market place while the council made a decision on his application.

Updated: 09:51 Friday, June 18, 2004