Concessionary Bus Travel Bill [Lords]

My hon. Friend makes a good and pertinent point. I will talk about that in more depth in a moment. In Committee, I sought support for several measures that would have forced the Government to be more transparent in their financial obligations, to reconsider the funding package to local government, and to clarify how they would interact financially with operators. This afternoon, I seek support for new clause 3. Let me set out some of the background to the new clause. As all Members will appreciate, council tax has doubled in the past 10 years and now constitutes a heavy burden for those on low and, in many cases, middle incomes.