A restaurateur has compared councillors to “dictators” in a new banner which he installed outside his business today (Thursday, October 12).

Clinton Pugh put up the sign outside Cafe Coco to protest the East Oxford Low Traffic Neighbourhoods which he claims have harmed trade in the area.

It comes ahead of a meeting on Tuesday when Oxfordshire County Council’s cabinet will decide whether to make the LTNs permanent.

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Oxford Mail: Clinton Pugh has put up the sign outside Cafe Coco to protest the East Oxford Low Traffic

The leading councillors behind the LTNs have always claimed they reduce air pollution and traffic and make roads safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

But Mr Pugh, whose daughter is the actress Florence, said: “It’s intimidation, bullying, and completely undemocratic.

"They are acting like dictators, and we are telling them that.”

Equipped with a ladder and a power drill, he spent half-an-hour hoisting and securing the large white banner on the wall of his Cowley Road restaurant.

Oxford Mail: Clinton Pugh has put up the sign outside Cafe Coco to protest the East Oxford Low Traffic

It is not the first time he has protested the LTNs, with a similar sign installed in February leading to threats of a £2,500 fine from Oxford City Council.

Mr Pugh said he didn’t care what the consequences would be of his latest protest.

“They have done nothing about the court proceedings. I just laugh whenever they say that because it’s freedom of speech,” he said.

“I don’t care what they do this time. I don’t give a s***.”