But there were signs today the council might be prepared to change its mind over the issue with local authority officers due to examine Mr Ramsay’s council house to see if the kind of access he needs is feasible.

Mr Ramsay, who was wounded in the second world war and has two artificial knees and arthritis in the hips, has been told by the city council he isn’t “disabled enough” to qualify for free installation of the ramp. Mr Ramsay said he was happy to buy the scooter himself.

Last night, the council’s social work convener, Councillor Helen Wright, said Mr Ramsay had been advised to turn to charity.

She said, “Social work officers have given Mr Ramsay information and advice about how he could get charitable funding for the motorised scooter and funding for alterations to the garden area for storing it.”

However, callers to the Evening Telegraph today saw the issue differently and were outraged that Mr Ramsay’s war service appeared to count for nothing when it came to getting help to retain his independence.

Around 265 ex-Black Watch soldiers – “almost enough for a company” – have pledged to raise cash to provide the ramp and possibly the scooter as well.

And Carnoustie woman Sheila Scott, whose late husband Bill was in the Scots Guards and who saw her daughter and son-in-law serve in Iraq, said she was prepared to build the ramp herself although, such was the strength of feeling amongst her friends and family, that she was sure she wouldn’t have to.

Mrs Scott is appealing for a building supply company to donate the necessary materials and she and her friends will supply the labour.

She said, “The man is 95 and has served his country and it’s shocking that the council won’t put in a ramp. If you’re a druggie or an alcoholic you get everything handed to you but all Mr Ramsay is looking for is some help to stay independent and it’s not going to cost the earth.

“This has really hurt me and I’m very angry about the way Mr Ramsay has been treated. The council is just a shambles and I’m really fed up listening to stories like these.

“If someone could donate what we’d need, I will do the work along with my daughter, Marianne, and my friends, not all of whom are connected with the army.”

Former Black Watch soldier Jim Melville, who runs a website devoted to the regiment, said his members were “shocked” at the city council’s response to Mr Ramsay.

He said they were so annoyed that they determined to do something rather than “just talk about it”.

“We’re talking about doing a sponsored abseil to get the ramp put in or buy a new scooter,” he said.

“There are 265 of us on the website and that’s just about a company. We don’t think it’s right that someone who’s 95, let alone a man who has served his country to give us the liberation and freedom we enjoy, should be given this treatment.

“I can’t understand where on earth Dundee City Council is coming from with this attitude. Mr Ramsay seems a great old guy who is still completely independent and just needs a little help to keep that independence.

“If he ended up having to go into a nursing home, it would cost an awful lot more than the cost of a ramp.”

One caller, who asked to remain anonymous, said she thought the city council’s stance was “disgusting”.

She added, “This man has done more for his country than the pen pushers at the council. They should be ashamed that they can’t give him a bit of support.”

A Dundee City Council spokesman said, “The council does want to help Mr Ramsay and is currently arranging for officers to visit him to have further discussions about the situation.

“They will also be looking at the garden site itself to determine whether or not it will be technically possible to provide the kind of access he is looking for.”