Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the removal of the £2 cap on fairs on the number of people using buses in (a) Dorset and (b) England.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The final monitoring and evaluation report into the impact of the £2 bus fare cap, including analysis on bus usage, was published on 12 February, and the Department does not plan to publish any further reports on the £2 fare cap.

Trends in bus usage will continue to be monitored and reported through the Department’s national statistics which are published annually.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will publish an analysis of the trends in bus usage for the full duration of the £2 bus cap.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The final monitoring and evaluation report into the impact of the £2 bus fare cap, including analysis on bus usage, was published on 12 February, and the Department does not plan to publish any further reports on the £2 fare cap.

Trends in bus usage will continue to be monitored and reported through the Department’s national statistics which are published annually.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to encourage more young people into farming.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Encouraging more young people into farming and land-based careers is vital to ensure a skilled workforce is in place and the longer-term viability of the sector.

Defra works closely with The Institute for Agriculture and Horticulture (TIAH) which is encouraging young people and new entrants into farming in its capacity as an industry led professional body for the farming industry. This includes leading a cross-industry initiative to address common negative misconceptions about the sector and providing free TIAH membership for students.

Furthermore, the Government has launched Skills England to ensure there is a comprehensive suite of apprenticeships, training and technical qualifications for individuals and employers to access, which are aligned with skills gaps and what employers need. It will work with its partners to ensure that regional and national skills needs are met.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what funding will be made available to small and medium size businesses when transitional arrangements for the Rural England Prosperity Fund end.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

After March 2026, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will end. Beyond this, the government is providing targeted, long-term local growth funding to support growth across the UK, completing the transition from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. This includes:

• Establishing a new local growth fund, including a 10-year capital settlement from 2026‑27 to 2035‑36, for specific mayoral city regions in the North and Midlands with the highest productivity catch-up and agglomeration potential.
• Investing in up to 350 deprived communities across the UK, to fund interventions including community cohesion, regeneration and improving the public realm.

For local government as a whole, the government's funding reforms will move funding to the places that need it, ensuring that funding is targeted effectively at the places and services that need it most and allocated in a way that empowers local leaders to deliver against local priorities.

DBT will lead on the broader SME strategy setting out the government's vision for SMEs and we will work across government to ensure effective support.

Funding related to the Rural England Prosperity Fund is a matter for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what funding will be made available to small and medium size businesses when transitional arrangements for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund end.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

After March 2026, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will end. Beyond this, the government is providing targeted, long-term local growth funding to support growth across the UK, completing the transition from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. This includes:

• Establishing a new local growth fund, including a 10-year capital settlement from 2026‑27 to 2035‑36, for specific mayoral city regions in the North and Midlands with the highest productivity catch-up and agglomeration potential.
• Investing in up to 350 deprived communities across the UK, to fund interventions including community cohesion, regeneration and improving the public realm.

For local government as a whole, the government's funding reforms will move funding to the places that need it, ensuring that funding is targeted effectively at the places and services that need it most and allocated in a way that empowers local leaders to deliver against local priorities.

DBT will lead on the broader SME strategy setting out the government's vision for SMEs and we will work across government to ensure effective support.

Funding related to the Rural England Prosperity Fund is a matter for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to help tackle loneliness in rural areas.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

This Government is committed to improving the quality of life for people living and working in rural areas, so that we can realise the full potential of rural communities.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport supports the Tackling Loneliness Hub, an online platform which assists professionals who are working to reduce loneliness to connect and share learning, including those in rural areas. In April, the government extended the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund, making up to £4.5 million available to tackle loneliness and increase volunteering. This will help improve social connections in 27 disadvantaged areas in England, 9 of which are rural and small urban areas.

The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs is supporting rural communities to address loneliness through its funding support for the modernisation and improvement of village halls. A further £750k in grant funding has been made available in 2025/26. Village halls host the delivery of a wide range of essential services and wider social and recreational activities, which help to address social isolation.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what further steps she plans to take to make rural bus routes sustainable.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government introduced the Bus Services (No.2) Bill on 17 December as part of its ambitious plan for bus reform. The Bill puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders and is intended to ensure bus services reflect the needs of the communities that rely on them right across England, including in rural areas in North Dorset. The government has committed to increasing accountability by including a measure on socially necessary services so that local authorities and bus operators have to have regard for alternatives to changing or cancelling services.

In addition, the Government has confirmed £955 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. This includes £243 million for bus operators and £712 million allocated to local authorities across the country, of which Dorset Council has been allocated £3.8 million. Local authorities can use this funding to introduce new bus routes, make services more frequent and protect crucial bus routes for local communities.

The Government has reaffirmed its commitment to bus services in this Spending Review by confirming additional funding of around £900 million of revenue funding each year from 26/27 to maintain and improve vital bus services, including taking forward bus franchising pilots, and extending the £3 bus fare cap until March 2027.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what mental health support the Government provides to farmers.

Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Delivery of mental health interventions sits with the Department for Health and Social Care, who are investing in mental health to ensure it receives the same attention as physical health. This includes the hiring of 8,500 new mental health support workers, which will reduce delays and provide faster treatment closer to people’s homes – including in rural communities.

Defra is supporting farming welfare organisations through funding the Farmer Welfare Grant. This aids organisations to deliver projects which will support mental health and build resilience in local farming communities. One recipient, the Farming Community Network, is using the funding to expand their FarmWell platform. This online resource is available to anyone and provides business and personal resilience advice on topics including mental health, isolation, depression and suicide.

Currently, grant recipients operate in Cumbria, Durham, Lancashire, Northumberland, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and online via the FCN’s FarmWell platform. Subject to budget prioritisation, we aim to continue and expand support for mental health in the agricultural sector and increase the number of areas receiving grant funding.

The RPA also runs a Welfare Forum, which brings together England’s largest farming and welfare organisations that provide mental health support to discuss issues farmers are facing.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students require transport to mainstream schools (a) nationally and (b) in Dorset.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

The department has not routinely collected data about the number of children who have their home-to-school travel arranged by local authorities. We intend to improve this area, so that central and local government have the robust evidence required to inform decision making.

In February 2025, the department launched a voluntary data collection about the home-to-school travel arrangements local authorities make for eligible children. The data collection exercise closed in mid-March. We are currently analysing the data and will be sharing findings with local authorities.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support she plans to make available to increase after school transport in rural areas.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

The department’s home-to-school travel policy aims to make sure that no child is prevented from accessing education by a lack of transport. Local authorities are responsible for arranging free home-to-school travel for eligible children. A child is eligible if they are of compulsory school age, 5 to 16, attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, their special educational needs, a disability or mobility problem, or because the nature of the route means it would be unsafe for them to do so. There are extended rights to free travel for children from low-income families.

Local authorities’ duty is focused on ensuring children can attend school for the main school day, but public transport has an important role to play too. The Bus Services Bill will put the power over local bus services in the hands of local leaders to ensure networks can meet the needs of communities who rely on them.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students are required to pay for transport to attend (a) sixth form and (b) college; and what the average cost is per student.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.

The responsibility for post-16 transport lies with local authorities, who have a duty to publish a transport policy statement each year that sets out the travel arrangements they will make to support young people to access further education.

Arrangements do not have to be free, but the department expects local authorities to make reasonable decisions based on the needs of their population, local transport infrastructure and the resources they have available.

The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund is also used to help students with travel costs, including those on low incomes. It enables schools, colleges and training providers to support students with transport costs where these have been identified as a barrier to participation.​

In addition to their statutory responsibilities, many local authorities do offer some form of subsidised transport which, combined with the 16 to 19 bursary, has been intended to provide financial support to students from low-income households. These decisions are best made locally, in consideration of local needs, the resources available and other local circumstances.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department can provide to establish a technical college in north Dorset.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The area of north Dorset is well served by four neighbouring further education (FE) colleges and a range of independent training providers, who provide a broad range of technical and vocation provision.

The department invited applications from general FE colleges to become one of ten construction technical excellence colleges (CTECs). The window for applications closed on 4 July. With one CTEC to be appointed in each region, these colleges will be the first to achieve TEC status, playing a pivotal role in shaping the wider programme and supporting regional providers to meet critical skills needs through a ‘hub and spoke’ model.

The UK's modern Industrial Strategy confirmed that we will be expanding the TECs programme to address shortages in engineering, which is critical to developing the skills needed in priority sectors including Advanced Manufacturing, Clean Energy Industries and Digital and Technologies. The government will also establish defence technical excellence colleges, provide funding for courses for defence-related skills and invest in cutting-edge university facilities to increase the pipeline of talent into the defence sector.

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Found: • Simon Hoare MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Local Government from 13 November 2023

Found: • Simon Hoare MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Local Government from 13 November 2023

Found: • Simon Hoare MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Local Government from 13 November 2023

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