Written evidence from the Civil Service
Pensioners' Alliance (BUS 02)
INQUIRY INTO
BUS SERVICES
AFTER THE
SPENDING REVIEW
1. Background
1.1 The Civil Service Pensioners' Alliance (CSPA)
is recognised by the Cabinet Office as the body that represents
retired civil servants. From the approximate 500,000 civil service
pensioners the Alliance has an active membership of over 61,000
which are organised into 100 local Groups in England and Wales
and, separate Branches covering Scotland and Northern Ireland.
1.2 The Alliance has been fully involved over
the last few years both as an independent organisation and through
our affiliations with organisations such as the National Pensioners'
Convention (NPC) in campaigning for the provision of concessionary
travel for pensioners and older people including the Free Bus
Pass.
2. Change in the level of administration of
the Concessionary Bus Pass Scheme For Disabled and Older People
2.1 Following the consultation exercise conducted
by the Department for Transport in 2009 we made a submission calling
for the administration of the concessionary bus travel scheme
to be undertaken by the upper level of local authorities as exampled
by the County Council rather than at the District Council Level.
However we also made the point that any such change should not
result in existing additional benefits, such as wider operating
times for access to bus services sponsored by individual local
authorities, should be detrimentally affected as a direct consequence
of the change in the level of administration, a point taken on
board by the Department for Transport in their response to the
consultation exercise.
2.2 Although we welcomed the decision of the
Department for Transport to change the level at which the concessionary
bus pass was administered, we had expected there to be a consultation
exercise undertaken by County Councils in conjunction with District
Councils and their equivalents, with interested parties to ascertain
whether or not there were likely to be any issues of concern arising
from the change in the level of administration. To date we have
only been able to ascertain that Hampshire County Council undertook
a public consultation exercise in which our local representatives
were involved.
3. Bus services after the spending review
3.1 Although we welcomed the change in the level
of administration of the concessionary travel scheme for disabled
and older people including pensioners, we supported this change
without the prior knowledge that the Coalition Government were
going to introduce a reduction in the Bus Service Operator's Grant
(BSOG) as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review. Were we to
have had prior warning of this change it is possible we might
not have supported the change in the level of administration until
the impact of the reduction in the BSOG had been assessed.
3.2 Whilst we welcomed the retention of the Free
Bus Pass for disabled and older people following the Comprehensive
Spending Review announcement in November, we now have very serious
concerns that this may prove to be a seriously diminished facility
especially in more rural areas where existing public transport
provision can be sparse under the existing funding and subsidy
provisions.
3.3 The proposed cuts in the BSOG over the next
four years will be likely to introduce serious cutbacks in the
provision of bus services, but this may prove to be a very difficult
issue to monitor given that the administration of the concessionary
travel scheme funding is no longer undertaken at the lower level
of local authorities.
3.4 In other words although there may have been
an advantage to the upper level of local authorities administering
the concessionary bus travel scheme, that advantage may well now
be undermined by the cutback in the BSOG. Also there does not
appear to be, or there seems to be very little provision on the
part of the upper tier of local government to undertake any public
consultation arising from the change in the level of the administration
of the concessionary bus travel scheme, which must pose serious
concerns over what consultation is likely to be undertaken regarding
the impact of the BSOG.
3.5 If it would prove to be of assistance
we would be prepared to give oral evidence to expand on any of
the contents of this submission.
December 2010
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