Transport (Wales) Bill

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker. I shall take your wise advice gratefully, but I would have loved to continue the debate. Granting financial assistance for air transport with no transfer of funds means that support will have to found from the Assembly’s current budget. It appears that significant amounts of taxpayers’ money, which, some might argue, could be better spent elsewhere, will be spent on the additional costs of the proposals. The development of transport and the economic possibilities in Wales is of the utmost importance. However, it is also important to remember that the commercial viability of flights in Wales today is questionable. The need for subsidies to begin running air transport services raises the question of whether the services would be workable in the long term. Relatively few people would benefit from the development of air services in Wales, compared with other more sustainable and less environmentally damaging forms of transport. There is no definite evidence of an unmet demand for flights in Wales. As Bus Users UK stated:"““required financial support is likely to be vastly out of proportion to the benefits that may accrue””." We welcome the prospects for developing Wales’s economy and services, but there is a need for great scrutiny of the matter. We welcome the responsibilities rather than the powers that the Bill grants the National Assembly for Wales. However, there is clearly a need to continue reviewing the Bill’s progress carefully. The results must be what is best for the people of Wales. The relevant bodies and spokesmen who were consulted during the drafting and previous scrutiny of the Bill asked for that. Huge questions remain, not least the details of how a truly integrated transport network, including cross-border services and authorities, will be delivered. We must be better informed of who exactly will be responsible and accountable for the bodies that the Bill aims to create. We must also know who will be responsible for delivering the appropriate funding. We clearly need to probe further into the exact mechanics of the Bill in Committee. Although we welcome the proposals, the measure must continue to be scrutinised and its finer details must be confirmed before we can accept that it truly offers the best deal for transport users in Wales.