Oral Answers to Questions

Claire Young Excerpts

Thursday 21st November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Louise Haigh]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for recognising the appalling state of our local roads, and the appalling backlog that we inherited. The significant uplift allocated for next year will start to turn the page on 14 years of decline, but of course that cannot be achieved overnight.

[Claire Young (Thornbury and Yate) (LD)]

11. What recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of bus services in rural areas.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Lilian Greenwood)]

Fourteen years of decline in local bus services under the previous Administration has hit communities across the country hard, especially in rural areas. This Government know that buses are a lifeline, and through our upcoming buses Bill, we will give all local leaders the powers that they need to design networks that meet the needs of their communities, including measures to ensure that vital services for passengers remain running.

[Claire Young]

Many of my Thornbury and Yate constituents have been impacted by the loss of the 84/85 bus. I am told that funding is made more difficult because that bus is a cross-border service between Gloucestershire and the west of England. Does the Minister agree that the rules need clarifying, so that they do not get in the way of ensuring that we keep important bus services running?

[Lilian Greenwood]

I absolutely recognise the concern that arises when vital bus services are lost, which the hon. Lady mentioned. That is why, in the forthcoming buses Bill, we will explore a local network management measure that will give local transport authorities the power to ensure that cuts to local networks are made only when absolutely necessary, thus protecting people like her constituents, who relied on that vital bus service.