Bus Services (No. 2) Bill [HL]

(Limited Text - Ministerial Extracts only)

3rd reading
Tuesday 29th April 2025 Lords Chamber

Moved by

[Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill]

That the Bill be now read a third time.

[The Minister of State, Department for Transport (Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill) (Lab)]

My Lords, I will make a brief statement on legislative consent in relation to this Bill. The Government accept that legislative consent from the Senedd would be required for Clause 22(6)(b) and Clause 24(4) in their current form. The Government are considering options to ensure that the constitutional requirements for consent are met. This includes either amending the clauses to remove the provisions in question or by seeking consent. My expectation is that this issue will be addressed during the Bill’s passage in the other place.

A privilege amendment was made.

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Moved by

[Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill]

That the Bill do now pass.

[Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill (Lab)]

My Lords, it has been a great privilege to take this Bill through the House. I am grateful for the scrutiny, challenge and wisdom from all sides during the debates on this important legislation.

The Government are clear in their ambition to reform and improve transport for passengers. Better connectivity—and the bus is the predominant mode of public transport—delivers growth, jobs and housing, in line with this Government’s plan for change. Ensuring that local leaders have the powers they need to have the best bus service for their local areas and communities is a critical step.

Your Lordships’ input as the Bill has progressed through this House has meant that it leaves this place a better Bill than when it was introduced. I hope that, in turn, the Government have shown themselves willing to listen and able to work with your Lordships.

I move to thanks. First, I give my gratitude to my noble friend Lady Blake of Leeds, who has given me her guidance and supported me on the Front Bench. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Moylan. I may not always agree with him—he seems to believe this Bill to be some sort of anti-enterprise activity, when it is not, and I must admit that I am still surprised by such a strong advocate of local authority independence over so many years having such a new-found desire for government intervention—but our engagement has been well-humoured and, more importantly, has given rise to some important issues that we have explored in your Lordships’ House. I thank the noble Earl, Lord Effingham, who has provided his views in his customary eloquent and courteous way.

The noble Lord, Lord Holmes of Richmond, and the noble Baronesses, Lady Brinton, Lady Grey-Thompson and Lady Jones of Moulsecoomb, have all campaigned effectively to improve accessibility and highlight the importance of inclusive transport. This has resulted in the Government tabling a package of amendments and supporting those brought forward by my noble friend Lord Blunkett on Report. I am very grateful to my noble friend for his constructive and pragmatic approach to the issue of floating bus stops.

There have been other notable contributions. The noble Lords, Lord Bradshaw, Lord Goddard of Stockport and Lord Burns, and the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock, have provided wise words and, as ever, I am grateful for their contributions. I have enjoyed discussing the merits of bus safety with the noble Lord, Lord Hampton, who has raised issues of critical importance. As ever, the wise words of my noble friends Lord Snape, Lord Whitty and Lord Berkeley have added value, and I extend my thanks to them for sharing their counsel.

I particularly want to mention the late Baroness Randerson. I spoke in remembrance of her at this Dispatch Box at Second Reading, and I am sure I speak for others, as well as myself, in saying how sorry I am that someone who had such passion for and expertise in transport and such passionate support for this Bill was not here to lead her party in scrutiny of it. Thus, I am pleased that we were able to make the provision in the Bill on zero-emission buses even more comprehensive. I extend my gratitude to the noble Baroness, Lady Pidgeon, for stepping in for her party, and for our constructive and positive discussions through the Bill’s passage.

Finally, I extend personal thanks to all the officials who have supported me, especially the Bill team, legal colleagues, the drafting team in parliamentary counsel and everyone else—to name but a few of the many excellent people involved, I thank Nicola, Kenny, Jenny, Hamish and Saskia.

I look forward to following the Bill’s journey in the other place. I expect we will reignite some lively debates on its return to your Lordships’ House. With that said, I truly believe that this Bill is the most substantial and positive change in years for the bus network, passengers and the bus industry. This is the right way forward. I beg to move.

[Baroness Pidgeon (LD)]

My Lords, it has been a privilege to lead the Lib Dem Benches on this important legislation, and somewhat daunting to have to follow at short notice our great friend Baroness Randerson and her work in the area of transport, specifically her passion for buses.

I believe the Bill is stronger for our detailed scrutiny and amendments, particularly on cleaner buses across England and the accessibility of the bus network as a whole. I thank the Minister and his Bill team for their genuine engagement at every stage of this legislation. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, and his Back-Bench colleagues for their contributions, though sadly not always their support for our amendments. Likewise, I thank in particular the noble Lords, Lord Hampton, Lord Blunkett and Lord Holmes, and the noble Baroness, Lady Jones of Moulsecoomb, for their contributions.

Particular thanks go to my noble friends Lady Pinnock, Lady Brinton, Lord Goddard and Lord Bradshaw for their strong support and contributions, and huge thanks go also to Adam Bull, our legislative support officer, who has supported our Benches every step of the way.

The Bill now moves to the other place, where I hope the wider issue of funding our bus services will be picked up in order that we can see the transformation of bus services across the country that we all desire.

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[Lord Berkeley (Lab)]

My Lords, I add my voice to the many noble Lords who have thanked my noble friend the Minister. It is his first Bill. He is a real expert on buses and transport generally, and the House owes him a debt of gratitude for the way he has dealt with the Bill. We have made changes, as other noble Lords have said. It has been a very friendly and useful debate. The key thing is for us all to try to encourage more people to use the buses, whether that is in the countryside or in towns. That is the key; the Bill will go a long way to encouraging people to do that.

[Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill (Lab)]

My Lords, I shall of course be far more enthusiastic than the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, on this excellent Bill. I expect it will be back, but this is the briefest of replies. In answer to the noble Lord, Lord Holmes, on the floating bus stop issue, my honourable friend the Minister for Local Transport is, in colloquial terms, “on it”, and I will write to the noble Lord about how far he has got following this session.

Bill passed and sent to the Commons.