Free parking for the OBESE: Overweight people given 'blue badges' because they can only walk short distances

Walsall Council gave permits after people put obesity as medical condition

Coventry City Council also had overweight people apply for badges

Applicants have to go through medical tests before passes are approved

Guidelines mean obese people can get one if weight limits ability to walk



Revelations come days after research said half of Britons would be obese by 2050

Overweight Brits are being given disabled parking permits – because they can only walk short distances.



People with a disability have to undergo a series of medical assessments before they are considered eligible for a ‘blue badge’.



But the guidelines mean people who are obese can apply for the passes if their weight limits their ability to walk.

Passes: People applying for 'blue badges' have to go through stringent tests before they are approbved

The revelations come the same week a shock report estimated half of Britons will be obese by 2050.

Critics have called for more stringent tests to be carried out to decide if an applicant’s weight issues are self-inflicted.

Tam Fry of the National Obesity Forum said: ‘Councils have got to do some pretty good digging to make quite sure that they do not exclude fat people who are fat through no fault of their own.



‘I think there are a lot of scroungers who will want to have buggies, but there are a lot of people who have a genetic problem which has made them fat.



Worrying: A report released last week suggested half of the British population would be obese by 2050

‘I think this is wasting money and its disastrous that you should be dealing these passes out to people who shouldn’t actually be receiving them.



‘They have got to decide the difference between one and the other.

‘I don’t think councils should be giving these passes out as the obesity problem gets worse.



'That is pandering to an individual who should be taking their own responsibility and getting themselves in shape.



'The ones who can be guaranteed these passes should be having a letter from their GP or some kind of medical practioner justifying that they should have one (a pass), because they have a condition which makes them the size they are.



‘I am afraid we have to be brutal about it and they get driven by someone who can actually ferry them around.



‘There are 2million people that are deserving of bariatric surgery.



‘Are you going to give 2million people free passes all over the country?



‘Local councils have to arrange for weight management courses and put these people on weight management courses, which are considerably cheaper.



‘No just for the local council, but to the local medical services.



‘It is opening the box for further abuse of systems which deserving people need.



‘The people who are very fat and need this kind of thing, by virtue of their disposition or other medical problems, cannot maintain easily a healthy weight. ‘



The abilities of local councils to issue badges to those who are seriously overweight was obtained in a Freedom of Information request.



Evaluation: Applicants have to go through stringent medical tests before they are given a parking permit

Walsall Council revealed they had given out passes to applicants who had listed obesity as a medical condition.



Coventry City Council also disclosed that applicants had put down obesity as one of their reasons behind asking for a blue badge.

The Department for Transport guidelines state a person can apply for a permit if they have a 'permanent and substantial disability that causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking'.

Robert Oxley, Campaign Director of the TaxPayers’ Alliance said: ‘Councils need to be careful when giving out expensive permits ensuring they only go to those who really need the help.



‘Obesity costs taxpayers a fortune and the best cure is exercise and diet - a bit more walking might be the best prescription available.



‘When people are found abusing the scheme it’s vital this is not ignored in order to maintain faith in the badge system.’



More than a quarter of adults (26 per cent) are obese, up from just 8 per cent in 1980.

In 2007, an alarming government review warned that by 2050, obesity would affect half of all adults and cost the economy £50billion a year.

Cllr Chris Towe, portfolio holder for resources at Walsall Council Coalition said: 'All assessments are undertaken by an independent mobility assessor in line with Government legislation on 1 April 2012.



'Each applicant is assessed against their mobility not their medical condition.'

Rules: The Department for Transport guidelines state a person can apply for a permit if they have a 'permanent and substantial disability that causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking'



