Passengers’ Council (Non-Railway Functions) Order 2010

There may be two views about the effectiveness of the old representation arrangements to which the noble Lord has referred. The Bus Appeals Body, as I indicated in my opening remarks, said that it will continue and that it will continue to be funded by the industry, but research has shown that many passengers have not received the response that they would want to their complaint. The situation may have changed since the noble Lord ceased being chairman. Passenger Focus has statutory powers, which the Bus Appeals Body does not have. It does not look just at complaints and the wider powers are therefore important. I assure the noble Lord that support for the change, as evidenced by the consultation, was very considerable. I should also make it clear that Passenger Focus will not consider matters already dealt with by the London Transport Users’ Committee, commonly known as London TravelWatch. Passenger Focus and London TravelWatch have a good record of co-operating on issues affecting rail passengers and will extend these arrangements to offer a joined-up approach to buses, coaches and trams. The order would also not prejudice or diminish the independence of traffic commissioners, to whom I referred a moment ago. They will continue to act as the industry regulator for buses and coaches. Although the draft order does not prescribe how complaints appeals should be handled, I recognise that the Government’s decision for bus complaints appeals to remain with the Bus Appeals Body, rather than being transferred to Passenger Focus, might be disappointing for some stakeholders, though not, I suspect, for the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw. However, I assure the Committee that Passenger Focus will be working with the industry, Bus Users UK and the Bus Appeals Body to ensure that complaints appeals are dealt with appropriately, and improved where necessary. The draft order would give bus, coach and tram passengers’ statutory representation for the first time, a proposal which has received very widespread support. Passenger Focus has secured many benefits for rail passengers through evidence-based campaigning and advocacy. We are confident that it will be able to transfer this capability to champion the interests of bus, coach and tram passengers. I therefore recommend the draft order to the Committee. Motion agreed.