Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress her Department has made on the roll out of bus franchising.

On 9 September 2024, the government laid a Statutory Instrument to open up bus franchising to all local transport authorities (LTAs) in England. It also published a consultation on proposed updates to bus franchising guidance, which closed on 7 October 2024. These measures will speed up and lower the cost of franchising for LTAs. The government’s response will be published in due course.

The government will also bring forward a Buses Bill later in this parliamentary session which will build on this progress by increasing powers available to local leaders to choose the model that works best in their area, including franchising or local authority ownership.