Well done all of you who made a protest about closing the public toilets in The Vale.

I received an email from the Leader of The Vale District Council saying there had been a lot of complaints.

Now, not only aren’t they going to close them, they are investing £250,000 in updating and refurbishing them. Best of all, several that had been without a disabled toilet will now have one – great news.

This goes to show that if we all pull together and protest strongly and clearly on issues that have a detrimental impact on disabled people’s lives we can and will make a difference.

There are many dedicated people who, over the last 40 years, have done just that, so let us show our gratitude by carrying on this work.

What is happening on the national scene though? Recently the Autism Society highlighted the potential problem of sufferers when applying for a Blue Badge.

The behaviour of autistic people can be very unpredictable and they have no understanding of road safety.

So the nearer the car is to the shops the less walking is needed. However, one of the criteria is to assess the individual’s ability to move around and to walk certain distances of up to 200 metres.

These tests make no allowance for those with autism who are able to walk but not safely, and indeed no allowance for those with fluctuating conditions such as MS.

Some of the regulations around safety have been called guidance, which has left the door wide open for different interpretations.

Plenty of campaigning and lobbying has been going on; success at last, with the Government accepting that they “got it wrong” and Iain Duncan Smith has confirmed the Government will be making changes to the regulations so it is clear that safety will definitely be taken into account. Victory!

We must congratulate those dedicated people who fought so strongly.