Petitioning for Fair Fares at No.10
22nd February 2012
Yesterday afternoon George joined Norfolk MPs and Transport Officials to present the Fair Fares Petition to the Prime Minister.
Norfolk's 23,500-signature Fair Fares petition was delivered to 10 Downing Street today along with a formal request for a special grant to cover the unfunded costs of the Concessionary Travel scheme.
Concessionary Travel is a nationally-funded scheme operated by local authorities, but for many the Government funding has been well short of the actual cost - in Norfolk's case £4.5m short this year (2011-12). This forces authorities to fill the gap from their own resources, putting pressure on other services including support for rural bus services.
The handing over of the petition at No 10 at 3pm was supported by John Hart, Leader of Devon County Council, and Sophie Allain of the national Campaign for Better Transport.
Representing Norfolk along with George were Graham Plant, Cabinet member for planning and transportation, Brandon Lewis, MP for Great Yarmouth and Keith Simpson, MP for Broadland.
Speaking after the handover, George said:
“Reliable transport links are essential for sustaining the vibrancy of rural communities and there is a great fear shared across Norfolk that the decline in these services would leave those most vulnerable isolated.
We are heading towards a perfect storm in Norfolk with a rapidly ageing population, marginal rural commutes and rising fuel costs. And our rural bus network just can’t keep up.
For too long deprivation in rural areas like Norfolk has gone unrecognised, and this petition should help to bring these issues to the forefront of politics.”
