New call for 'lifetime’ Blue Badge award for people with conditions unlikely to change

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A Labour MP has asked the UK Government to consider issuing ‘lifetime’ Blue Badge awards to people with health conditions that are unlikely to ever change or improve.

Julia Buckley asked the Department for Transport, which oversees operation of the Blue Badge scheme, if any assessment has been made of the “potential merits of making lifetime Blue Badge awards to people with lifelong conditions”.

The latest figures show that there are nearly three million Blue Badge holders across Great Britain, including 235,700 living in Scotland.

A Blue Badge is usually valid for three years and costs £20 in Scotland, up to £10 in England and is free in Wales. In a written response on Thursday, new Roads Minister Lilian Greenwood explained how reapplying for a Blue Badge every three years “gives local authorities the opportunity to reassess badge holders” to ensure they still meet the eligibility criteria.Ms Greenwood said: “As a general principle, Blue Badge eligibility is based on mobility.“Reapplying for a badge every three years gives local authorities the opportunity to reassess badge holders when their badges expire, ensuring that they continue to meet the criteria which makes them eligible for a badge.“It also serves the purpose of making sure that the details local authorities hold about the badge holder, and those that are displayed on the badge itself, remain correct.”A Blue Badge enables people to park closer to the places they want to go when they travel as a driver, or a passenger.