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Concessionary Bus Travel Act 2007 (Variation of Reimbursement and Other Administrative Arrangements) Order 2010

My Lords, the move to the upper-tier authority is long overdue. A plethora of negotiations has fallen very heavily on small bus operators that are negotiating with several local authorities about very small sums of money, and the administrative burden has certainly been far too high. Will the Minister reconsider the problem of the border areas? The other day, someone from Church Stretton told me that they could go to Norwich on their bus pass but not to Knighton, which is the nearest market town. That may or may not be true, but there are problems in border areas and I hope that, through discussions with the Welsh Assembly and Scottish Parliament, these problems will in time be removed. The real problem, as the noble Baroness, Lady Hanham, said, is that some authorities are getting more money and some are getting less. The move towards upper-tier authorities will help to put this right, but probably the only way in which to put it right is to introduce smart cards. There will be some time lag from now to when these are introduced. I urge the Government to keep a firm eye on the allocation of money to people who need it to be certain that it is not going to people who do not need it. Will the Minister assure me that this subject will continue to be kept under review? There is also provision in the arrangements to ensure that bus operators will be no worse or better off as a result of the scheme. However, my attention is drawn to a number of areas that have capacity problems. So many pensioners are travelling that bus routes have to be duplicated at least. I was in Swanage recently when five buses had to be provided to take all the people home who had gone there during the day. This creates very bad peak problems for the operator. I also draw the Minister’s attention to the fact that the system does not work very well in rural areas, in which people make long journeys. People who make journeys within a town generally make fairly short journeys, and one can understand why. Old-age pensioners have found that they can make very long journeys in rural areas, often through attractive scenery; it is an opportunity to have a day out. Again, however, the operators of these local services suffer. Will the Minister assure me that the Government continue to review what is happening so that the burden of cost falls fairly and is adjusted as and when necessary? Other than that, I am quite happy to support the order.