Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to her Department's guidance entitled Setting up a bus franchising scheme: December 2024, published in December 2024, whether a local transport authority is permitted to use surplus revenue generated from a micro-franchised area to fund supported bus services outside the boundaries of that micro-franchised area.

A local transport authority can use revenue generated from a franchising scheme to support bus services that are not part of the scheme, including those outside the scheme’s area.