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‘Councils could foot bill for national bus passes' Councillor warns
Local council tax payers could end up footing the bill for the extra costs of the Government's new national concessionary bus fares scheme, a Wirral councillor has warned.
Liberal Democrat Eastham Councillor Dave Mitchell, who is also one of Wirral Council's representatives on Merseytravel, wants a Government rethink on the scheme's funding.
“The Government says it's committed to fully funding the additional costs of this new scheme but the grant they have given us is based on estimates of takeup.
“We believe that the true costs could be considerably higher, and until the scheme beds in we won't know the full cost implications.
“However, the Government grant has been set for the next three years, and after the third year it will be incorporated into our general grant.
“In addition, the Government now has powers to override how we reimburse bus companies for the scheme.”
Councillor Mitchell will be presenting his proposals in a motion to Wirral's Full Council meeting on 21 April.
Councillor Jean Quinn, Wirral Council's Cabinet Member for Streetscene and Transport services, who will be seconding the motion said,
“New research by the Liberal Democrats has revealed that the Government scheme is due to lump Council Tax payers nationally with a bill of up to £60m.
“All in all, unless the government listens to the concerns of local councils, the costs and risks of this scheme are likely to fall on local council tax payers.”
Liberal Democrat MP Norman Baker said recently,
“While the scheme will help many poor pensioners, terrible accounting from the Government means it will be Council Tax payers across the country who will end up picking up the bill.”
The motion to Wirral's Full Council follows:
Full Council April 21 2008
Notice of Motion - Liberal Democrat Group
NATIONAL CONCESSIONARY BUS FARES SCHEME
This Council notes:
- that the Government announced in 2006 an enhanced statutory concessionary fares scheme for England , operational from 1 April 2008;
- that the existing minimum national concessionary scheme provides free off-peak local bus travel for anyone over 60 years old and for eligible disabled people within their local authority area, however, the enhanced scheme will provide guaranteed off-peak local bus travel in whichever area they are travelling within England;
- the new scheme could incur considerable extra cost to Merseytravel, which could put pressure on its levy policy or require compensatory savings elsewhere in the public transport budget;
- the basis on which reimbursements will be made to bus companies will be subject to appeal to the Secretary of State, who can override local decisions made on the basis of local needs.
This Council also notes that:
- the Department for Transport has stated that it is committed to fully funding the additional costs of implementing the enhanced scheme and has made available a grant of £212 million of which Wirral's share will be between £1.2m and £1.5m;
- the grant will be payable from April 2008 for a three-year period as a specific grant, but after that the funding will be incorporated into the general formula funding grant.
This Council believes that:
- the funding provided by the Department for Transport should remain a specific grant since the full financial implications and risks of the new scheme are not yet known;
- the incorporation of the grant into the general funding formula grant will result in an increasing burden on Wirral council tax payers;
- grant funding based on usage should continue.
This Council therefore calls upon the Secretary of State for Transport to:
- cover the full costs of the National Concessionary Bus Fares scheme so that the costs and risks do not fall on Wirral council tax payers;
- award the grant as a specific grant and reconsider the decision to incorporate it into the general funding formula grant;
- reconsider the basis on which the reimbursement will be made to bus companies.
This Council also calls upon its MPs to lobby the Secretary of State on its behalf.
Moved by: Councillor Dave Mitchell
Seconded by: Councillor Jean Quinn
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