Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will continue to support the bus industry after the end of March when the existing revenue support mechanisms expire; and what plans they have to give Traffic Commissioners notice of that decision in order to plan for any service withdrawals.

The Government has made available nearly £2 billion since March 2020, through emergency and recovery grants, to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic on the bus sector. This support is currently in place until the end of March 2023. The Department is actively considering its support for the bus sector from April 2023 and will set out further details shortly.

We are actively engaging with operators, local authorities, and the Office of the Traffic Commissioner to ensure they are aware of this and that they receive sufficient notice. We welcome the recent statement published by Traffic Commissioners that they will seek to support operations with the notice period for changes to registrations.