Louise Haigh MP, Secretary of State for Transport, has doubled down on the Labour government’s move to bring buses into public ownership.

Describing buses as a ‘passion’ during her speech today (23 September 2024) at this week’s Labour Conference, Louise Haigh said: “Millions depend on [buses]. But for too long, politicians in my position have cared too little. And it’s shown. For decades, private operators have been allowed to pick and choose routes and services that puts profit ahead of passengers with no control for communities.”

After highlighting that the government is extending powers so every area could run their own bus services under a similar model to London’s network, as she had promised to do at the last Labour Conference, Louise said the government is to go further still: “We’ll overturn the ideological Tory ban on public ownership of bus companies, a public transport system that’s for the public. Don’t let anyone ever tell you the colour of the rosette doesn’t matter. Don’t let anyone tell you that politics doesn’t change things because of what we achieved together. We’re not just cleaning up the mess of the last 14 years, we are ripping up the very roots of Thatcherism that have undermined and run down our transport system for decades.”

She claims ‘privatisation of our transport system is not pragmatism’ and said: “It hasn’t spurred innovation, it hasn’t made things better. It belongs to a past that has failed and we do not accept failure when it comes to the lives and livelihoods of British people.”

£2 fare cap clarity – wait continues

Commenting on her speech, Graham Vidler, CEO at the Confederation of Passenger Transport, said: “It’s great to have a Transport Secretary who cares about buses and can recall when bus fares were just tuppence in Sheffield. But passengers today are waiting for clarity over the future of the £2 fare cap. An immediate decision is needed to prevent a cliff edge return to fully commercial fares when the £2 fare cap ends in December – a scenario that would harm passengers and services.

“Passengers also want to hear how far this government is prepared to sustain and prioritise the type of investment in bus services which is currently improving passenger experience across the country. Better bus services will only arrive when stable and adequate long-term funding and a toolbox of options permit local leaders and bus operators to choose an approach that will best suit their local community.”