Save free school transport
West Dorset Liberal Democrats today condemned the Government’s plans to end free school transport as set out in yesterday’s Queen’s Speech. Justine McGuinness, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Spokesperson for West Dorset commented: “The proposals to end free school transport, taken together with Tuition Fees, shows that the Labour Government’s pledge of ‘Education, Education, Education’ is now yet another broken promise. Yet again Mr Blair has shown that he does not know or care about people who live in rural Britain.
“Our school children will be some of the hardest hit by this proposal. Families in West Dorset work hard to make ends meet. Salaries are some of the lowest in the country. Does the Prime Minister really think that we can afford to end free buses to schools? We should be encouraging children to go to school not making it harder for them.”
The Government’s proposals to end free school transport could hit hard at families in rural Dorset. Dorset County Council now operates an excellent School Transport Service which provides free transport for pupils who live beyond specified distances from school or where it would be unsafe to walk even shorter distances. The County Council also runs a concessionary fares scheme for many children who do not qualify for free school transport.
Liberal Democrat County Councillor Gil Streets said: “I fear that if the Government’s proposals are introduced in Dorset many families in rural Dorset who are not on benefits would be disadvantaged. To me, it looks like Central Government is seeking to pass a bureaucratic time bomb to Local Government with out considering the cost.”
