Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the funding required to sustain bus networks at pre-covid-19 outbreak levels from September 2021 to April 2022 with passenger numbers at (a) 60 per cent, (b) 70 per cent, (c) 80 per cent and (d) 90 per cent of the corresponding period in 2018-19.

The Government is working with operators and local authorities to ensure that the transition away from emergency Coronavirus Bus Service Support Grant (CBSSG) funding is timed appropriately. To date, over £1bn in funding has been committed to this scheme. As part of this process, the Department has modelled a range of patronage scenarios, considering various factors that influence demand and which would affect the funding required.