Oral Answers to Questions

Mike Amesbury Excerpts

Thursday 2nd March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Nick Fletcher (Don Valley) (Con)]

1. What steps he is taking to help ensure the continuity of bus services.

[Mike Amesbury (Weaver Vale) (Lab)]

11. What assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of trends in the number of bus services in England since 2019.

[Ian Levy (Blyth Valley) (Con)]

12. What steps he is taking to help ensure the continuity of bus services.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Holden]

My hon. Friend, who is a champion for his Don Valley constituency, raises an important issue. I know how important local bus services are to him and to people across the country, and how constituents can be frustrated by service cancellations. Bus operators are facing a number of challenges, which the Government continue to work with the sector to address. I look forward to meeting him in Don Valley in the coming weeks to discuss the issue further with him and other operators.

[Mike Amesbury]

On Monday evening, I got a letter from Arriva North West about 13 bus routes being scrapped and two depots being closed in the Northwich part of my constituency, as a result of a strategy called “Bus Back Better”. What is better about that? What will the Minister do to ensure that my constituents can get to their place of work, school or college and go about their everyday business? I ask him to step in.

[Mr Holden]

The hon. Member raises some important questions. I know that Conservative colleagues have met Arriva in recent days, and I met my hon. Friend the Member for Crewe and Nantwich (Dr Mullan) and my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Eddisbury (Edward Timpson) about the Arriva issues in the area yesterday. My understanding is that D&G Bus is already looking to provide some of the services that Arriva has decided to remove itself from. I note the hon. Member’s concern about the issue and if he would like to meet me, I would be delighted.