Clause 61
Local Transport Bill [Lords]
6:30 pm
Rosie Winterton (Minister of State, Department for Transport; Doncaster Central, Labour)
I certainly agree that there should be clear information available to bus and coach passengers about how and to whom they can make comments or complaints about the service they are using. That issue came up time and again in consultation. In response to the debate on the matter in the other place, the Government amended the Bill on Report to insert what is now clause 70. That clause will give powers to the Secretary of State to make regulations to require certain persons to display particular information in appropriate places. That could go wider than just information about complaints. What we have in mind is local authorities, bus companies and scheduled coach operators being required to display on passenger vehicles, at bus stops and bus stations or in timetable leaflets the contact information for customer service and passenger representation. Those notices might also be used to raise awareness of the new bus passenger champion and to ensure that passengers have appropriate customer service contact details.
It is more appropriate to have the powers as laid out in clause 70 than to give powers to PTEs, which would be the effect of the amendment. First, the suggested powers would help only passengers who lived and travelled in PTE areas; they would not help to address issues in other parts of the country. Secondly, we want to ensure consistency throughout England in the information available to passengers. That will be more effectively achieved by the appropriate power being with the Secretary of State.
In a sense, the amendment would also address complaints against the operator, but there might be instances where passengers wish to complain about a local authority—for example, if it is not enforcing bus lanes properly. The powers in clause 70 will allow the appropriate information to be provided to passengers who want to make such complaints.
I hope that I have reassured the hon. Member for Manchester, Withington that I take the issue of information about complaints seriously. We feel that the amendments that we have made through clause 70 are a more appropriate way to deal with that. With that reassurance, I ask him to withdraw his amendment.