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Written question asked by Patrick Mercer (Conservative) on Monday, 20 October 2003, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 23 October 2003. It was answered by Tony McNulty (Labour) on Thursday, 23 October 2003 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Dept for Transport

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the costs to (a) each local authority, (b) London boroughs and (c) local government as a whole of extending the national minimum standards for concessionary travel schemes to give people over the age of seventy a 100 per cent. discount on fares; what estimate he has made of the increase in the local government finance settlement necessary fully to reimburse local government for the costs of increasing the national minimum standards for concessionary travel schemes from a 50 per cent. discount to a (a) 60 per cent., (b) 75 per cent., (c) 90 per cent. and (d) 100 per cent. discount for (i) people over the age of sixty, (ii) the disabled and (iii) in total; what estimate he has made of the cost to (a) each local authority, (b) London boroughs and (c) local government as a whole, of increasing the national minimum standards for concessionary travel schemes from a 50 per cent. discount to a (i) 60 per cent., (ii) 75 per cent., (iii) 90 per cent. and (iv) 100 per cent. discount for (A) people over the age of 60 years, (B) the disabled and (C) in total; what estimate he has made of the change in the local government finance settlement necessary fully to reimburse local government for the costs of extending the national minimum standards for concessionary travel schemes to give people over the age of 70 a 100 per cent. discount on fares- Includes fact that all variants not costed and disproportionate cost.
Answer

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what estimate he has made of the costs to (a) each local authority, (b) London boroughs and (c) local government as a whole of extending the national minimum standards for concessionary travel schemes to give people over the age of 70 a 100 per cent. discount on fares; [133960] (2) what estimate he has made of the increase in the local government finance settlement necessary fully to reimburse local government for the costs of increasing the national minimum standards for concessionary travel schemes from a 50 per cent. discount to a (a) 60 per cent.,(b) 75 per cent., (c) 90 per cent. and (d) 100 per cent. discount for (i) people over the age of 60, (ii) the disabled and (iii) in total; [133961] (3) what estimate he has made of the cost to (a) each local authority, (b) London boroughs and (c) local government as a whole, of increasing the national minimum standards for concessionary travel schemes from a 50 per cent. discount to a (i) 60 per cent., (ii) 75 per cent., (iii) 90 per cent. and (iv) 100 per cent. discount for (A) people over the age of 60 years, (B) the disabled and (C) in total; [133962] (4) what estimate he has made of the change in the local government finance settlement necessary fully to reimburse local government for the costs of extending the national minimum standards for concessionary travel schemes to give people over the age of 70 a 100 per cent. discount on fares. [133963] Mr. McNulty: The extension this year of the minimum statutory requirement to men aged 60 to 65 cost £50 million per year. The Government do not plan further extensions of concessionary fares. We estimate that free concessionary travel for pensioners in England (women aged 60 and over, men aged 65 and over) would cost in excess of an extra £300 million a year. We have not costed all the variants listed in the question and could do so only at disproportionate cost.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
411 c674-5W;411 c679-80W; 133960;133961;133962;133963
Session
2002-03
Subjects
Disability Bus services Costs Concessions Fares Finance Exemptions Local government Pensioners
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk