CHURCHGOERS will have to pay and display before they pray after their parking permits were scrapped.

Members of Weymouth and Portland Borough Council's management committee said the council could not be seen to give preferential treatment to any particular group.

The town's Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry also failed to secure a pledge from councillors to ring-fence £30,000 a year from forthcoming increases in car parking charges.

Chamber representatives said they wanted to use the money to reinvest in the town centre's economy.

The decisions were reached as councillors agreed to recommend raising a minimum of an extra £200,000 a year through increasing car parking charges.

Members of the full council will decide next Thursday whether the charges will rise as planned.

The Rev Richard Franklin told management committee members that taking away his congregation's passes could impede the work they do in the community.

He said: "We are asking you whether it is not sad to penalise the community-building work we do.

"We have to raise, each year, £80,000 from our members' contributions in order to sustain the work of the church."

He said the council providing passes helped to keep the congregation's personal costs down and helped facilitate community work.

David Beaman, chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry, said: "We do suggest the council gives serious consideration to our proposal because it would help offset some bad feelings we might get from our business colleagues."

Coun Doug Hollings said: "I can understand what you say.

"But when you are a member of this management committee and are faced with a gap of over £1million, we have to try and close that gap.

"One of the things we have to do to do that is to increase car parking charges."

Committee members voted to accept all their officers' recommendations on car parking charges except for two proposed new figures for parking at the Nothe in winter.

Members agreed to suggest the charges should be £1 for two hours there and £2 for four hours.

Officers had originally suggested they should be £2.20 for two hours and £4.40 for four.