Starting April 1, some Welsh hospitals will no longer collect parking fees. Welsh Assembly Government's Health Minister Edwin Hart said National Health Service trusts with existing contracts with private car parking companies must start reducing the parking fees until the agreement lapses.

By 2011, only four Welsh hospitals out of 130 will still levy parking charges because of the long-term time frames of their contracts.

The British Medical Association was satisfied with the development since the free parking privileges cover patients, visitors and staff. But it warned the privilege could be abused.

Dr. Richard Lewis, Welsh secretary of BMA said, "the BMA has campaigned on this issue for some time and believe that it unfairly penalized patients... It is, however, important that parking facilities are maintained and secured for the benefit of those that properly use our hospital services and are not otherwise abused, and that is the legitimate responsibility for trust themselves."

Although the new regulation applies to Wales alone, Scottish hospitals were ordered to place a cap of $5.95 (3 pound) on parking fees.

The move to cut or reduce parking fees is the result of pressure from campaign groups to abolish the levy, labeled by the BMA as a tax on the sick. According to the Freedom of Information, trusts in England and Wales earned up to $198 million (100 million pound) in parking fee collections in 2007.