§ Viscount Craigavonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they have studied the Briefing Paper of the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services, concerning the special problems of transport for young people, called Going Nowhere Fast: Young People and Transport; and what their response is.
§ Lord Brabazon of TaraI congratulate the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services on its interesting and carefully prepared report on the special problems of transport for young people.
Some of the recommendations are more for local than central government.
However, as far as central Government is concerned, the report perhaps takes insufficient account of the Government's proposals to introduce greater freedom and competition into the provision of local bus services, which, as the report rightly stresses, are important to many young people. The Government are confident that these proposals will enable and encourage the bus industry to respond to the needs of all bus users, particulary those members of the community who do not have ready access to a car, which of course includes many young people. I draw the noble Lord's attention especially to the Government's proposals for a transitional grant for rural services, comencing at £20 million per year, and to the fund to finance innovation in rural services. The report mentions the expense of taxis, and it is therefore to be hoped that young people will also benefit from the Government's proposals for the sharing of taxis and hire cars at separate fares.
The Government believe that these measures, with their emphasis on value for money and provision for local needs will do much to meet the problems of local travel faced by young people, to which this report has usefully drawn attention.
611WA