Scrapping free car parking for NHS staff is long overdue

The private motor car is, of course, an environmental vandal which needs to be driven out of our towns and cities for the good of the planet and for the benefit of residents who are being killed by traffic fumes. We know this because we keep being told by some of those on the left that parking charges, congestion charges and fines must all be ramped up and the proceeds used to improve public transport and encourage cycling and walking.

But there seems to be an exception. When the motorists in question are NHS staff, their fondness for their cars ceases to be an outrage. On the contrary, it is a human right for them to be able to drive to work and park their cars for free when they get there. 

This morning, health secretary Sajid Javid has announced that the temporary reprieve on hospital parking for NHS staff introduced in July 2020 for the duration of the pandemic is to end on Friday.