Blue Badges
Written by author on January 31, 2011
Dumfries and Galloway Council has decided to continue charging for Blue Badges. The original decision to charge £20 for a Blue Badge was made during the budget setting process in February 2010.
A motion to withdraw the £20 charge was brought to a full meeting of the Council on Friday 28 January. The vote was close, but went against the motion and in favour of an amendment to continue charging.
Councillors were told that the £20 represents a contribution towards administration and will cover only the partial cost of providing a badge. The badge is not a charge for parking and offers a facility that can be used elsewhere in Europe as well as in most of the UK.
Chair of the Social Work Services Committee, Councillor John Dougan, said, ‘A number of people representing groups who had lobbied on this topic were able to attend the meeting. It is encouraging to see that people are prepared to participate in and observe discussions about Council services. Consultation about services has formed a large part of this year’s budget discussions and Council officers and members are happy to involve interested groups to achieve fair and effective policies. Council officers are committed to working with DG Voice as the primary representative organisation for disabled people in Dumfries and Galloway as we implement the Council’s decision.’
There had been a moratorium on charging the £20 since a challenge was made on the impact assessment of the policy that was done at the time of the budget. This has been resolved with the Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Council’s Social Work Services department will now go ahead and write to anyone who has been in receipt of a badge since 1 April 2010 to explain that the £20 is now due.
