Hansard

In winding up, I first extend my sincere thanks to those who managed to speak during this short, but very important, debate. I also offer my genuine thanks to the minister for supporting me through the process and to the team from Transport Scotland, without whose guidance I think I would have found it virtually impossible to take the bill forward. They were absolutely fantastic at guiding me through the process. As Kevin Stewart rightly said, thanks should also go to my own staff, who have been extremely supportive. I also extend my thanks to the Local Government and Regeneration Committee for its scrutiny of the bill at stages 1 and 2. Stewart Stevenson was appointed at stage 2 to enable the process to meet the requirements of Parliament, so I extend my sincere thanks to him for assisting me in the process at stage 2.

As we have said before, the bill is small, but it will have a significant impact for people with disabilities, given the powers that we are looking to provide to local authorities. It is about enforcement. As has already been said, any enforcement will be done sensitively and in a manner that will not cause anxiety to badge holders.

I thank the minister for addressing most of the points that Stewart Stevenson raised in his intervention. All blue badges will continue to have a photograph, but it is at the request of people with disabilities themselves that the badge will remain face down. It is the unique identification number on each badge that will ensure that the badge holder will be identified in any enforcement process.

Cameron Buchanan mentioned the analogy of taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut. There is no intention of doing that—there will be no need to, because we will have the information on the database. We will not go to every blue badge holder and investigate, because there is no reason to. What we are trying to do is to establish the evidence of a pattern of misuse. Gordon Catchlove does that in Edinburgh. When he gave evidence to the Local Government and Regeneration Committee at stage 1 he explained how he goes about his function. It is at that point that we can determine whether a badge is being misused.

The bill represents a review process. Since the new criteria came about, the right of review if their application is turned down has not been afforded to a person with a disability. Their application will now be looked at again and the criteria examined to ensure that, if the person genuinely requires a blue badge, they will be afforded one.

At stage 1 of the bill, only 20 local authorities had a review process; I can confirm that all 32 local authorities have now put one in place. That is progress, and the local authorities are to be commended.

We have come a long way on this journey, but we still have a long way to go. Will the introduction of the bill stop universal misuse? I believe not. Will it prick the consciences of those who are determined to misuse the badge? I believe not. What it has done and will do is to raise awareness, not just through the media but among badge holders themselves.

Cameron Buchanan said that the guidelines that we give people when we issue a blue badge are important. Cameron admitted that when he received the regulations, he took one look at them and put them in a drawer. I sincerely hope that, through common sense and use of his blue badge, he has not had a parking ticket—apart from the time in London that he mentioned. It is not just about blue badge spaces; it is about using the blue badge to ensure that if there is a single yellow line or a double yellow line, someone can park appropriately, provided that there are no other restrictions.

Christine Grahame mentioned private car parks. Like the minister, I wrote to the supermarket chains and the retail outlets asking them what they had done to monitor use of blue badge spaces. I give an undertaking to Parliament today to write once again to the supermarket chains and retail outlets to ask them to step up to the plate and—on the back of the bill, if it is passed this afternoon, which I sincerely hope it will be—to look at ways of enforcing the use of the blue badge spaces within those private areas.

It is important to ensure that our health boards step up to the plate, too. They already have the means to monitor blue badge spaces and to ensure that they are appropriately used. I will be asking the health boards to ensure that—again, on the back of the bill—they, too, look at ways in which they can enforce use of their disabled parking spaces.

It has been an enjoyable if lengthy process. My thanks go to all those who participated in the consultation and all those who want a bill that will give them better use of their blue badge. I hope that it is a bill that will prick the consciences of people who have misused badges. It will also give us the guidelines that we so desperately need to try to ensure that a person with a disability can use their badge appropriately and without confusion.

I thank Parliament and every member who has participated in the process—through stages 1 and 2 and in this afternoon’s short but concise debate—for offering sincere assurances that they will support the bill through to the end of the process this afternoon.