Poster-boy of 'nightlife tax' faces calls to go

The Tory councillor who remained defiant during the West End parking furore was today facing rising pressure to quit.

Lee Rowley, Westminster's cabinet member for parking, was being urged to consider his position after council leader Colin Barrow announced his decision to step down.

Two Michelin starred chef Michel Roux Jr said: "I think Lee Rowley should go and hide and make himself very small. I think he is the instigator of this, he is in charge of parking and he should carry the can."

Hippodrome boss Simon Thomas said: "He is so deeply involved with this that it would seem appropriate for him to resign alongside Colin Barrow." Mr Rowley, 31, a KPMG management consultant, has become the poster-boy villain of the "nightlife tax", with his apparent lack of humility infuriating opponents.

At one meeting, he was jeered after stating: "The council is not using parking to raise revenue." On another occasion, he had a furious exchange with a member of the public after claiming the parking debate was a "game".

He has now inspired a YouTube spoof video showing him defiant as Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive plays in the background. But some critics believe he could salvage his career. Nightclub owner Peter Stringfellow said: "He seems a smart boy to me and he didn't seem as committed to the parking charges as Colin Barrow.

"If he's prepared to stand up and say 'I supported Colin Barrow out of loyalty and I'm quite happy to start again' then he could stay. He could even stand for leader." Born and raised in Derbyshire, Mr Rowley worked in the family dairy business and read history at Oxford. He stood unsuccessfully as the Tory candidate in Bolsover, against Labour's Dennis Skinnner, in 2010. At Westminster, the Thatcherite's rapid rise - he became a councillor at 26 and is on his second cabinet post - has attracted sniping among colleagues.

It has seen him become super-cautious: his register of gifts and hospitality includes a glass of water and two orange juices. He earns a modest £19,000 a year as a councillor. Asked if he was set on becoming an MP, he replied: "It's not something that is on my mind at the moment." As things stand, remaining on the council's front bench may be his biggest challenge.