Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what consultations with charities and other providers of community transport his Department had prior to introducing new guidance on that matter.

The Government consultation on the use of section 19 and section 22 permits for road passenger transport in Great Britain closed on 4 May 2018. The consultation focused on proposals to ensure domestic legislation and guidance are aligned with EU Regulation 1071/2009 on road transport operators. A number of workshops were also held during the consultation period. Charities and other transport providers submitted responses and participated in the workshops.

An initial impact assessment looking at the impact on community transport providers, including charities, was published alongside the consultation. To help build a stronger evidence base in relation to the potential impacts of the proposals, the consultation requested information from those providing community transport services as to how they operate.

In general, the Department believes that, with the exception of a small number of large operators who may in effect be genuinely competing on commercial terms with commercial bus operators, community transport operators should not be affected by future clarifications of law.

The Department remains committed to supporting the community transport sector. To that end it has made available £250,000 to help community transport providers who find they are no longer able to operate under the section 19 and 22 permit system, to meet relevant EU requirements.