Oral Answers to Questions

Meg Hillier Excerpts

Thursday 8th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Keir Mather]

I know just how hard the hon. Member works to represent constituents on the Isle of Wight. He knows that the Government are committed to supporting a locally led solution to the challenge. Crucial to that is the appointment of a chair to the cross-Solent group, and he and my hon. Friend the Member for Isle of Wight West (Mr Quigley) will be pleased to know that I will have information on that announcement very shortly.

[Dame Meg Hillier (Hackney South and Shoreditch) (Lab/Co-op)]

Earlier, Ministers talked about the benefits of bus services. In London we have been at the forefront of improved bus services, but unfortunately some aspects of that, such as low-traffic neighbourhoods, have had an impact on main routes, and now the No. 38 bus route is under threat of curtailment. Is the Department for Transport doing any strategic work on how we see those interactions, so that it can advise mayors and others in local areas on how to manage the interaction between different transport uses on our roads to ensure that buses run fast and deliver for the people who really rely on them?

[Heidi Alexander]

I know that the Roads and Buses Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Wakefield and Rothwell (Simon Lightwood), would be happy to meet with my hon. Friend to discuss that issue in more detail. As far as we are concerned, best practice when establishing schemes such as low-traffic neighbourhoods requires consultation with bus operators about projected impacts on bus routes, bus frequencies and bus journey times.