Schedule 11

Part of Finance Bill – in a Public Bill Committee at 10:45 am on 9 June 2009.

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Photo of Kitty Ussher Kitty Ussher Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Work and Pensions 10:45, 9 June 2009

I will take the questions in the order in which they were put. Yes, there is an impact assessment that specifically considers the impact on disabled people. I am sure that the hon. Member for Fareham will have that impact assessment in his papers. Although the Finance Bill can achieve many things, the policy intention behind the measure was to simplify the arrangements and ensure that they are consistent with environmental objectives, not to widen the scope of the policy. We wanted to ensure that the provisions and exemptions that are available for disabled drivers are replicated in the new legislation. As he rightly said, and as we have made clear several times, it is our intention, subject to state aid rules, to ensure that the exemptions are carried over into the new system. That remains our intention. The timing has been agreed with all the players.

The hon. Gentleman then asked specifically why in paragraph 22 we do not simply use the qualification criterion of a person holding a disabled badge. The answer quite simply is that the power to award a badge is devolved to local authorities and we wanted to ensure  that we had a comprehensible and tighter set of criteria, so that the system and the resources are properly targeted on those people who need our support.