Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the future of the Bus Recovery Grant after December 2022.

The Government has provided nearly £2 billion in emergency and recovery grants to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic on the bus sector. On 19 August the Government announced a further £130 million, six-month extension to the Bus Recovery Grant. The extension period started on 5th October and will end on 31 March 2023. Allocations to December 2022 have been confirmed, and we expect to confirm allocations from January to March 2023 in due course.

The Government also provides support to the sector through the Bus Service Operators Grant every year. Around £200 million is provided annually to bus operators to help them maintain an extensive network and keep fares down, and a further £42 million is provided to Local Transport Authorities every year to subsidise socially necessary bus services.