§ 12. Mr. SkinnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he next expects to meet bus drivers and other workers from the east midlands regarding safety and conditions; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. FreemanPay and conditions are matters for individual bus operators. The operator and vehicle licensing system provides for safety standards.
§ Mr. SkinnerIf the Minister did meet the workers in the east midlands, he would learn from them that since the Mafia-type boss Mr. Souter of Stagecoach Holdings took over the East Midlands Motorbus Company, he has not only derecognised the union and sacked some of the workers, but made them scared stiff of raising the issue of bus safety—because they would lose their jobs if they did. It is time that there was an inquiry into Stagecoach Holdings, which now has a monopoly 100 miles wide, stretching from the east to the west coast of Britain, and high time that the Government, who believe in freedom of choice and in the right to belong to a trade union, did something about it.
§ Mr. FreemanThe hon. Gentleman is clearly wrong to link safety standards with private enterprise. There is no connection whatever. [Interruption.] The hon. Gentleman will know that bus operators must be licensed and that the abilities of bus and coach drivers are re-examined every five years. Buses and coaches are examined every year. Safety and private enterprise can and do go together.