Blackpool Council is set to face court action over the way it deals with illegal parking in the week when the Government told local authorities to take a softer stance with motorists.

A driver says he expects to issue county court proceedings within the next week in the hope of winning back £180 which he paid in 2004 after receiving two separate tickets.

The case, to be brought by Burnley man, Ben Durkin, will centre on the wording used by the council's parking officers on tickets issued to motorists - and his supporters say a victory could pave the way for millions of pounds to be paid back.

Mr Durkin said: "These local authorities seem to think that they are above the law. They expect motorists to follow the law and so they should, but the law is a two way street.

"They may say we are using technicalities, but isn't it a technicality when they book you two minutes after your parking ticket expires?

"To be honest it is not just Blackpool, I have encountered problems like this with parking regimes across the country."

Mr Durkin is working with Neil Herron, the Sunderland-based metric martyr who has turned his attention to parking charges after being prosecuted for selling groceries in pounds and ounces in 2000.

He believes victory in Mr Durkin's case would open the way for thousands of drivers to claim back millions of pounds in parking fines from the council.

"We have had approaches from a number of people in the Blackpool area," said Mr Herron, who is also investigating similar cases elsewhere in the country.

A spokesman for Blackpool Council said: "We have not received any papers from court regarding parking tickets. If we do they will be dealt with by the appropriate method."

The government this week issued draft guidelines for local authority parking enforcement, including instructing councils to use wheel clamping only for persistent offenders. Blackpool does not currently use wheel clampers.

Other recommendations, including improved training for staff at all levels and better information for motorists, will be considered.

"We await with interest the outcome of the consultation and the new measures that could be introduced," a council spokesman said: "We are happy to re-examine our policies and procedures to see where improvements can be made."

Parking has been a hot topic since Blackpool Council took over parking enforcement and introduced on street car parking in 2003. In the system's first full year, 58,000 tickets were issued in the resort, with some traders and opposition councillors claiming trade was suffering as a result.

Fylde and Wyre Borough Councils also run their own parking enforcement regime, through the Lancashire-wide Parkwise scheme. Authorities which are part of the Parkwise scheme expect to discuss the government proposals at their next monthly meeting.