Blue Badge numbers rise

MORE than 3700 discretionary Blue Badges were issued to drivers in Edinburgh over the past year, new figures show.

The discretionary passes are given to motorists who do not fill the criteria for automatically receiving a Blue Badge due to disability.

Last month it emerged charges for the disabled badges could be scrapped as part of a review of how the scheme is run. Edinburgh City Council introduced a 20 administration fee for the parking passes earlier this year, in line with some other Scottish councils.

However, respondents to a review of the scheme carried out by the Scottish Government labelled charges a "tax on the disabled." Ministers are now reviewing how the scheme operates before issuing new recommendations.