Encouraging Young People to Use Public Transport

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:20 pm on 19 February 2019.

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Photo of Darren Millar Darren Millar Conservative 2:20, 19 February 2019

Diolch, Llywydd. First Minister, back in 2017, my party put forward some very clear proposals for free bus travel, not generous bus travel in the way that you're proposing, which is just a discount, but a much more generous scheme to enable those between 16 and 24 to travel free of charge on the bus network. You at that time described it as 'fantasy, fag-packet economics', but the reality is, of course, that the policy was adopted by the UK Labour Party shortly afterwards, and they are now advocates of the scheme. Given that this is a programme that is fully costed, good for young people, good for public transport and good for the environment, won't you take another look at our scheme and our proposals, which also extend discounts to the rail network as well for those 16 to 24-year-olds, many of whom have no other alternative other than to use the buses because of the rising costs of insurance premiums on their motor vehicles?