withdrawal of free over 75s visitors parking permit

user1977

Presumably the decision was made at a council committee - in which case there'll be minutes and background papers on the council website with more info on the rationale.

TooManyPoints

I posted a link earlier that explained bus passes are exempt from age discrimination legislation and enshrined in primary legislation.

You posted a link to a Citizens’ Advice article. It cited some examples where age discrimination was permitted, of which bus passes was one. The legislation itself (which I quoted) does not mention bus passes or any other examples. It simply says that it is permissible to provide a concession based on age when providing any service. Schedule 3 does provide some other specific exceptions to age discrimination legislation (such as age-related holidays and age restricted services) but these do not refer to concessions. 

if your council offered it they'd potentially have to justify why it was ok as an exception.

No they wouldn't. The legislation says it is permitted. There are no caveats and no justification is required. They simply offer it in the same way as barbers offer pensioners cheap haircuts. They justified the removal, we are told, thus: 

"The change is required by age discrimination legislation which requires all age groups to be treated equally" 

Which, as far as offering concessions to particular age groups goes, is incorrect.

 …but I think they can defend their position

On what basis do you think they can do that? I’m not saying they cannot withdraw the concession. I’m saying their stated reason for doing so is incorrect and almost certainly designed to deflect voters' anger away from them. Further than that, why has it taken them 12 years to arrive at this conclusion?

im glad you’ve moved from cannot to disinclined.

I imagine you'd be even more glad if I had ever suggested that visitors "cannot" visit.

Ath_Wat

TooManyPoints said:

On what basis do you think they can do that? I’m not saying they cannot withdraw the concession. I’m saying their stated reason for doing so is incorrect and almost certainly designed to deflect voters' anger away from them. Further than that, why has it taken them 12 years to arrive at this conclusion?

While true, I think the OP needs to decide though whether they want to use their time pursuing the local authority for giving an incorrect reason for withdrawing the concession, when that is very unlikely to result in them not withdrawing the concession.  They might get an apology for giving an incorrect reason, and that will likely be it.

TooManyPoints

They might get an apology for giving an incorrect reason, and that will likely be it.

Yes that's all he can hope for. And that would be a good enough result - provided the council's duplicity is widely published.

born_again

Odds on the reason is simply that they need more income. So charge everyone for parking passes.