A fundraising page set up to pay a decorated war veteran's "ludicrous" £130 parking fine has been inundated with donations.

The GoFundMe page set up by Liz Waller to pay for Douglas Newham's ticket received £130 in just four hours, before shooting up to £200.

Liz Waller, 50, of Frizington, was motivated to set up the page after a parking ticket was slapped on Mr Newham's windscreen when his hospital appointment at the Cumberland Infirmary , Carlisle, unexpectedly overran.

"I was absolutely furious that this has happened," said Mrs Waller. "I think it's absolutely ludicrous."

Mr Newham, 95, who received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his acts of valour and courage whilst flying against the enemy in World War Two, appealed against the parking ticket to the Infirmary's car park contractor UKPC .

But his pleas fell on deaf ears, his fine increased from £40 to £130 and the company was threatening to take him to court.

Mr Newham, of Upton, Caldbeck, believed the fine was unjust and unreasonable but said he was going to have to pay it otherwise UKPC would take him to court.

The widower, who lives alone, visited the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle on Monday, September 26, last year for a routine consultation.

Not expecting the appointment to be any longer than previous ones, he paid for an hour long ticket.

But doctors asked Mr Newham to visit additional specialist departments during the consultation, forcing him to overrun his parking ticket by 34 minutes – worth no more than £1.


Douglas Newham

Mrs Waller, who met Mr Newham through the local RAF Association at Cockermouth about 10 years ago, said it was not like him to complain.

She said: "He's got quite a bulldog spirit about him. He's somebody that's definitely a character - he survived three or four tours on bomber command.

"He's somebody that's a true gentleman and believes in what's right is right.

"For him to actually take this to appeal, obviously he feels there's an injustice been done not only to himself but more to other people. He'll be thinking about other people caught in the same situation."

Mr Newham suffered a bad fall about two weeks ago and has been in the Cumberland Infirmary since, although he is due to be discharged soon.

Mrs Waller said she is not sure whether he has already paid the fine.

"I haven't said anything to Douglas about the fundraising," said Mrs Waller, "I'm very conscious of the fact that he's in hospital so the last think I want is for him to be more stressed."

People have donated between £5 and £50 to the GoFundMe page Mrs Waller set up, and left messages for Mr Newham.

Linda Cannon wrote: "We have to look after our old boys - they looked after us."

Mrs Waller said any additional funds raised by the page would be donated to the local RAF Association in Cockermouth, which Mr Newham is president and vice chair of.


Mr Newham has also received offers of help from the RAF Benevolent Fund and a Hayton-based driving instructor, who offered to pay for his fine.

A spokeswoman for North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust said at the time that UK Parking Control (UKPC) was brought in to manage the safety and security of everyone who uses its hospital sites.

She reassured the public that the trust and its PFI partner have been working to improve parking provision at the Cumberland Infirmary and "will continue to make improvements for the benefit of patients, staff and visitors".

“Pay on exit barriers will be installed later this year to allow patients and visitors to pay for their parking at the end of their visit,” she said.

The GoFundMe page set up by Mrs Waller can be found here .