A CAM woman is facing an uphill struggle to see her husband in hospital after Government bureaucracy forced her to give up her car.

Janice Winsor, of Fairmead, had to return the Nissan Almera on Tuesday because her husband - parish councillor David Winsor - is not allowed to sign a lease for another car while he is in hospital.

Mrs Winsor has asked Stroud MP David Drew to intervene and he has called for "leniency" to be shown in the case.

Cllr Winsor, who has been disabled for the past 40 years, has used a Motability Lease vehicle since 1987.

However, he has spent the last seven months in Stoke Mandeville Hospital and during this time the lease for his vehicle has expired.

The couple have not been able to renew it because the Motability section of the Department of Work and Pensions insists that Cllr Winsor himself must come out of hospital to sign for the car.

Mrs Winsor said: "This is a grave injustice. Our previous 18-year record seems to stand for nothing. Because some people abuse the system we all have to be treated the same.

"I have been using the car, as I am entitled to do, to go and see him every other week, but now I will not be able to see him as I will have no means of transport.

"He could be in hospital for up to another three months."

Although Mrs Winsor was allowed to drive the vehicle, the entitlement to taking out the lease lies solely with her disabled husband.

Martin Fleckney, from the Department of Work and Pensions, explained they were bound by Government restrictions.

He said: "Nobody in hospital can sign for a car. If someone is in hospital, they are obviously there for a reason and are therefore not fit to drive.

"The lease can only be taken out by the disabled person too. Wives, husbands and partners can't claim for them."

However, on Wednesday Mr Drew said that he was determined to find a solution to the problem.

He regretted that the situation had come to the point of the car being lost but was determined to help Cllr Winsor get it back.

Mr Drew said: "The trouble with the Motability scheme is that it is an active scheme and they have rules to make sure that the vehicle is not used inappropriately.

"However, given the circumstances of this case, I think we need to get some leniency."

Despite his long stay in hospital, Cllr Winsor is still trying to fulfil his role as a parish councillor.

Parish clerk Sue Hanman said: "Even though he has been in hospital for so long we still send him all the council paperwork and he is regularly in touch with us."