Bus Services Bill [HL]

Viscount Younger of Leckie Excerpts

Wednesday 20th July 2016 Lords Chamber

Moved by

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

84: Clause 9, page 37, line 21, leave out “a related enhanced partnership” and insert “the”

[Viscount Younger of Leckie (Con)]

My Lords, it falls to me to present myself as a change of driver at this point, and I will speak to Amendments 84, 90 and 100 to 107 to Clause 9. This is a series of amendments that correct drafting errors or clarify the intention of the Bill. I will describe briefly their effect. The detail can be found in the letter sent by my noble friend Lord Ahmad on 16 June.

Amendment 84 amends provisions on the review of an enhanced partnership scheme and corrects a drafting error. Amendments 90 and 105 replace the words “enhanced partnership area” with,

“area to which the enhanced partnership scheme relates’,

as the original term was not defined. Amendments 100 and 101 correct the drafting in proposed new Section 138J to clarify that local transport authorities must provide facilities where an enhanced partnership scheme requires them to do so. Amendments 102 to 104, 106 and 107 clarify the process around variation of an enhanced partnership plan or an enhanced partnership scheme. All of these changes are minor and technical and do not constitute a change of policy. I beg to move.

Amendment 84 agreed.

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Moved by

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

112: Clause 14, page 63, line 21, leave out from “relates” to end of line 22 and insert “to—
(i) a particular service that only has stopping places in the area to which the scheme relates,(ii) particular services at least one of which is such a service, or(iii) a particular description of services which includes or is capable of including such a service.”

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

My Lords, I will speak to Amendments 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120 and 127. I will also speak to Amendment 112A, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley.

The Bill provides for bus registration powers to transfer from the traffic commissioner to the local authority where an enhanced partnership is in place. This is something that local transport authorities have been asking for to enable the local enforcement of bus standards. The registration function will be delegated for services that run wholly within the enhanced partnership area. Cross-boundary services will have to comply with the requirements of the enhanced partnership but will be registered with the traffic commissioner.

Amendments 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 and 117 clarify the circumstances in which bus registration functions are automatically delegated from the traffic commissioner to the relevant local transport authority. The policy intention is to ensure that registration functions are automatically delegated where the scheme contains any route requirements that affect any services operating wholly within the partnership area.

I believe that may also be the intention behind Amendment 112A, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, and I thank him for it. No doubt he will want to speak to his own amendment, and I will listen carefully to what he says in a moment. Amendment 113 deletes the existing wording at new Section 6G(4) in Clause 14, as he suggests, and replaces it with a clearer description of the circumstances in which the registration function must be delegated.

Amendment 127 is a consequential amendment that amends Clause 18 to add local authorities to a list of bodies that can reject applications to vary or cancel services if an operator fails to comply with regulations. Amendments 118, 119 and 120 clarify which traffic commissioner functions should be delegated by placing these in the Bill rather than in regulations.

I hope that my explanation of the government amendments satisfies the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, and that he feels able to withdraw his amendment. I beg to move.

[The Deputy Chairman of Committees (Baroness Garden of Frognal) (LD)]

My Lords, I have to inform the Committee that if Amendment 112A is agreed to, I cannot call Amendment 113 by reason of pre-emption.

[Lord Berkeley]

My Lords, I am very grateful for the Minister’s explanation. This is another occasion when I am slightly concerned that the Minister has answered my amendment before I have spoken to it, but that is the way we have it here. In this case I do not complain; I shall read what he said very carefully and I suspect it will be fine. I do not propose to move my amendment.

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

I am happy that the noble Lord is happy.

Amendment 112 agreed.

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Moved by

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

113: Clause 14, page 63, line 28, leave out from “relates” to end of line 29 and insert “to a particular service that only has stopping places in the area to which the scheme relates, particular services at least one of which is such a service or a particular description of services which includes or is capable of including such a service—”

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Moved by

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

123: Schedule 4, page 81, line 17, at end insert—
“(4) In subsection (1)(bzb) (inserted by Schedule 2), after “143A” insert “or 143B”.”

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

My Lords, an enhanced partnership will enable the local authority to examine bus services in its area and to propose improvements to the network. The Government believe that to do so effectively, the authority should have information about local services and passengers. Clause 10 requires operators to provide certain information about their services to a local transport authority in connection with the preparation of an enhanced partnership. This amendment ensures that there are sanctions available if an operator does not take all reasonable steps to comply with a request for information. Such sanctions would be in the gift of the traffic commissioner attaching conditions to a public service vehicle operator’s licence. The amendment also ensures that there is a consistent approach in relation to franchising and enhanced partnerships. I beg to move.

Amendment 123 agreed.