Meeting of the Parliament 19 August 2014
I welcome the opportunity to participate in the final stage of the bill, and I congratulate Dennis Robertson on all his good work in bringing the bill this far. I look forward to the bill being passed later today.
The blue badge scheme is an extremely important tool to enable the independence and lifestyles of those with mobility issues who would otherwise face unacceptable difficulties in maintaining regular day-to-day activities. The scheme must be preserved and protected from those who would abuse it. Each time a blue badge is misused on a car that is parked in an area where only those who hold valid blue badges are allowed to park, genuine blue badge users are denied use of a space. That is particularly problematic in city centres, where parking charges can be quite prohibitive and have led to people abusing blue badges to try to park on the cheap. According to an officer from the City of Edinburgh Council:
“between 52 and 70 percent of all badges that are on display will be being misused.”—[Official Report, Local Government and Regeneration Committee, 26 March 2014; c 3278.]
That is a staggering figure, although I understand that there are some—Inclusion Scotland, for example—who have reservations over the veracity of that claim. Nonetheless, badges are being abused and that must be tackled.
During stage 2, John Wilson lodged a number of amendments on behalf of Inclusion Scotland, due to some concerns over the bill that they shared. I had some sympathy with John Wilson’s amendment 1, which sought to limit the power of confiscation so that only non-valid badges could be confiscated. Like other members, I worry that eligible badge holders might have their badges confiscated due to the actions of third parties and then be left to face the consequences. I accept that the power is important if we are to discourage abuse and free up spaces for people who genuinely need them, but I do not want people who desperately need their badges to go without them for any length of time.
I was satisfied with the reassurance that was given to the committee that valid badges will be returned to holders within 14 days of confiscation, along with an explanatory letter that reminds the holder of their responsibilities. That approach is proportionate. However, I expect the Scottish Government to monitor whether holders routinely get their badges back within two weeks.
Given that a new strict liability offence will be created, it will be important for all badge holders to be aware of their responsibilities, to ensure that they do not inadvertently misuse their badges. The booklet that is currently distributed to holders is certainly a bit clunky, as Scottish Government officials acknowledged when they gave evidence, so I welcome officials’ work to produce a more appropriate document.
I welcome the good progress that the blue badge reform working group is making towards developing a code of practice. A key element of that guidance will be about ensuring that enforcement officers always deal with people sensitively. Disability equality awareness should be a focal point of guidance and should be uppermost in the minds of officers on duty. That is extremely important.
The bill aims to strengthen the existing framework and to safeguard the rights of disabled people. Dennis Robertson must be congratulated. He was right to introduce the bill; I look forward to supporting it later this afternoon.
17:21