Army hero who lost a leg in Afghanistan denied a disabled parking permit by council bosses 'because he might get better'

A hero soldier who lost a leg in Afghanistan has been denied a disabled parking badge three times by council bosses.

Lance Corporal Johno Lee has clocked up £800 in fines for parking in disabled bays in his home town of Newark, Nottinghamshire, on days when he uses a wheelchair or feels unable to walk very far.

When he first applied to Nottinghamshire County Council for a blue badge, he was advised he was young and 'may get better'.

Wounded veteran Johno Lee has racked up over £800 in parking fines because council officials refuse to grant him a disabled persons parking permit

His right leg was amputated below the knee after he was caught up in an explosion in Helmand Province in 2008 and was catapulted into a minefield.

He said yesterday: 'I replied that they possibly did not quite understand the situation and that I thought it unlikely my leg would grow back.

Johno in Afghanistan before his injury. 'I think everybody in the next few years will know someone who has been injured. We are in a war at the end of the day.'

'Sometimes the leg swells so badly I can't even get the prosthetic leg on. I then have to park in disabled bays otherwise I can't get into town, but then I get a ticket.

'If I live for another 60 years, am I expected to continue to have to struggle for all of that time?'

Lance Corporal Lee's applications are being supported by the British Limbless Ex-Servicemen's' Association.

In a statement, the Council's Service Director Mr Paul McKay said: 'We are looking into the matter and have arranged for a member of staff to meet Mr Lee to review the situation. We will urgently assess whether he meets the criteria for a disabled parking badge as laid down by the Department of Transport.'

Mr Lee, a charity worker for the Armed Forces, added: 'A lot of people are coming home from Afghanistan severely wounded and are deserving of recognition rather than to be disrespected by the bureaucrats.'

When he was blown up, his heart stopped twice, once on the helicopter taking him to Camp Bastion and once on the operating table, but he was revived each time.