JC urges help for le old and disabled
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RADES Union Congress is to press )ort Minister Norman Fowler to uce measures contained in the r Government's Green Paper on sionary fares for the elderly, blind sabled said rail union leader Sid eI1 last week.
;aid that the Green Paper had prothe introduction of a national e to provide concessions of a miniof half fares for disabled on joury road and rail.
scheme would be for off-peak and it would cost another £50m to e it according to the TUC Transidustries Committee.
the committee will also be pressing wler for some improvements in the of the Green Paper concessions ing an increase in the level of the ssions and an extension of the scheme to peak hours for the disabled only — not the blind or the elderly.
And the committee has rejected the idea that the elderly or the handicapped should have to pay for their concessionary travel.
Speaking after the meeting of the Transport Industries Committee Mr Weighell said that the TUC would be looking for early steps to allocate resources to the National Bus Company to bring in the TUC proposals.
Last week Mr Fowler told Labour MP John Golding in the House of Commons that he had turned down the idea of a nationwide half fares scheme for the blind and disabled and pensioners but he would be examining whether the variety of schemes operated by local authorities was causing "avoidable difficulties" and he said that he would be having consultations on this.