My Hollywood star daughter tried to save my cafe – but it’s being shut down by ‘dictators’ driving away customers
THE dad of a Hollywood star says his daughter tried to save his cafe but it’s being shut down by “dictators” driving away customers.
Clinton Pugh, 64, blames annoying traffic schemes for killing his trade and claimed they had helped lay waste to his establishment in Oxford.
The business owner, whose daughter is Hollywood actress Florence Pugh, blasted the schemes as “stupid”.
The Don’t Worry Darling actress, 27, who has starred alongside the likes of Harry Styles and Emma Watson, has helped her dad out in the past.
Mr Pugh blames the Low Traffic Neighbourhood in Oxford for putting customers off and ruining his business.
The LTN scheme sees residential streets blocked with bollards and planters in a bid to reduce traffic.
Mr Pugh, whose daughter is fast becoming one of Britain’s biggest stars in Hollywood, told MailOnline: “The losses have been so high that I have lost a site.”
Campaigners insist LTNs improve air quality, lower crime and reduce traffic in residential streets.
But Mr Pugh says that claims that pollution is lowered are false.
He said: “Why is it ok for residents to park their cars here but nobody else can get here.
“Why do it all at once. It’s just not thought through properly. It’s really stupid.
“They’re acting like dictators. This is the problem. They’re asking for our opinion – but they’re not listening.”
He says 1.2 miles of roads in Oxford have been “blocked”, causing congestion, pollution and damage to the local economy.
Mr Pugh continued: “It drives all the traffic on to the ring road. We can’t all ride bicycles. It has become more difficult to get here, people just don’t come.
“You can’t get staff, they can’t get home or they have to have taxis. The cost of these things is just astronomical and people don’t want to work.
“Tradesmen can’t come because it takes too long to get here.”
Ministers pursued a growth of the schemes in the wake of the Covid pandemic as they sought to encourage more people to walk or cycle in towns and cities.
But they have proved unpopular with drivers and residents, with many instances of road bollards being vandalised, for forcing them away from their usual routes.
Clinton – who has four kids including Florence and Game of Thrones actor Toby Sebastian, 31 – previously said the LTN had cost him £110,000 in lost earnings.
Energy minister Andrew Bowie said earlier today that LTNs could be scrapped if they are making it harder for people to work and travel at a time when the economy is struggling.
The schemes implemented by local councils are designed to boost cycling and walking by selectively closing off roads to motor traffic.
But critics say they simply move traffic problems to other areas.
Mr Bowie told ITV’s Good Morning Britain that the Government remains committed to ending the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles in 2030.
