Blue Badge Scheme Crack Down

30th December 2011

A wave of improvements to the Blue Badge scheme will help end misuse of disabled parking places.

The reforms announced by the Scottish Government, alongside the Department for Transport, include sophisticated new anti-fraud technologies and better managed records of badge holders.

The moves, being introduced from 1st January 2012, will ensure more access to disabled parking spaces for those who need them most.

Minister for Transport Keith Brown said:"The Blue Badge scheme is a lifeline for millions of disabled people but for too long, it has been open to abuse and misuse by far too many others.

"This causes real day-to-day problems for those genuine users of the scheme who need the use of disabled spaces but find them taken up, often by vehicles displaying fake or misused badges.

"We want to make sure that these crucially important parking places are used for the purpose for which they were intended - to help severely disabled people retain their independence and live full lives."

From January 1, 2012, a new Blue Badge design will be introduced which is harder to copy, forge or alter.

A telephone helpline will offer badge holders improved customer service.

And a new national database will allow enforcement officers anywhere in the country to check accurate details of badges and badge holders.

The changes will also see the introduction of automatic entitlement to a Blue Badge for severely disabled service personnel and veterans.

Independent mobility assessments will be introduced later in the year to ensure that those eligible are assessed fairly and consistently across the country.

Anne MacLean, Convener of the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland said:"We welcome the changes being introduced by the Blue Badge Improvement Service. The Blue Badge is an essential service for disabled people and this package of reforms to help prevent abuse, protect the parking rights of genuine badge holders and provide a more consistent and uniform approach is great news."

As at March 31, 2011 there were around 270,000 Blue Badges in circulation in Scotland.

The scheme has been in place since 1971 and helps disabled people to retain their independence by allowing them to park close to where they need to go.

The Transport Policy Directorate of Transport Scotland is responsible for the legislative framework of the Blue Badge scheme. Local authorities are responsible for administration and enforcement.

Following a consultation exercise carried out between July and October 2010, the Scottish Government agreed in January 2011 to work in collaboration with the Department for Transport and the Welsh Government to reform the Blue Badge scheme.