HC Deb 12 November 1975 vol 899 cc772-3W
Mr. D. E. Thomas

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how much of the total cost of school transport in England he estimates could be recovered from parents by imposing a standard charge of 7p per journey.

Mr. Mulley

If pupils now receiving free transport to and from school paid 7p a journey, it is estimated that the yield would be about £26 million a year or 40 per cent of the present total cost for England and Wales. Separate figures for England are not available.

Mr. D. E. Thomas

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what was the total cost of providing free school transport in each English region for primary and secondary schools in 1974.

Mr. Mulley

In the financial year 1973–74, total expenditure by local education authorities on transport between home and school was as follows:

£000's Out-turn Prices
South East 11,558
South West 3,179
East Anglia 1,934
West Midlands 2,663
East Midlands 2,463
North West 3,024
Yorkshire and Humberside 2,761
North 2,152
Total England 29,734

Regional data are not yet available for the financial year 1974–75, when total expenditure in England was about £38 million.