Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve the provision of local bus services in Cumbria.

The Government remains committed to improving bus services for all and expenditure on buses reflects this. It is for individual local authorities to determine how much of the block grant funding they receive is allocated to supporting bus services. The latest out-turn figures, for 2013/14, show that Cumbria County Council has an annual budget of over £2.5m for this purpose.

The Department also provides direct support to bus services each year through Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG), of which Cumbria County Council has received £480,314 covering the 2014/15 financial year.