Concessionary Bus Travel Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 25: 25: After Clause 9 , insert the following new Clause— ““Appeals For section 150(4) of the 2000 Act substitute— ““(4) An application under subsection (3) shall be made by notice in writing given not later than 56 days after the date on which the arrangements, or the variations, come into operation. (4A) The Secretary of State (in relation to England) or the Welsh Ministers (in relation to Wales) shall determine the outcome of any such application not later than 120 days after the date on which the application was made.”””” The noble Lord said: My Lords, this is the last substantial amendment that we shall deal with today. There has been a great deal of disquiet over the period of 28 days within which operators who are dissatisfied with the agreement that they have reached with the local authority must notify the Secretary of State of their intention to appeal. That period is far too short; it almost means that people have to put the appeal in without any experience whatever of what is happening on the ground. I should have thought that it was reasonable to extend the period to at least 56 days so that there is a reasonable opportunity for a month of experience before an appeal is submitted. Of the appeals made already, a great many were withdrawn after they had been put in by operators who had no option but to put in an appeal as a sort of longstop until some experience was gained. I have tabled a short amendment and hope that the Minister will reply in the affirmative. I beg to move.