Public Transport Connectivity

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:21 pm on 10 January 2023.

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Photo of Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford Labour 2:21, 10 January 2023

Well, Llywydd, first of all, I congratulate Mike Hedges on the success of his lobbying efforts on behalf of his constituents in Llansamlet. I know that Transport for Wales, who are responsible for the rail service, of course, that he mentioned, are working hard to try to make sure that there is an increased range and availability of integrated tickets to make it easier for people to make journeys by public transport. In the end, individual bus services under the current system remain the responsibility of individual operators. We know that the system, over many years, has put profitability before passenger need, and that is why this Government will bring forward a bus Bill in front of the Senedd to make sure that we have a different approach to the organisation of bus services in Wales, one that allows us to put people before profit and make sure that the extensive sums of money that the public invest in bus services in Wales reflect the public interest. Then we may see fewer of the sorts of difficulties that Mike Hedges has drawn our attention to this afternoon.