Louise Haigh vows to ‘tear up roots of Thatcherism’ – ending public bus agency ban

Labour’s Louise Haigh vowed to “tear up the roots of Thatcherism” by ending the Tory ban on local authorities running and owning bus services.

The Transport Secretary this morning unveiled a shiny new fleet of publicly controlled buses for Liverpool – similar to Manchester’s hugely successful Bee Network. In her barnstorming speech to conference as Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh put buses front and centre – promising an end to an era of neglect of Britain’s buses by politicians in Westminster.

“People still talk to me in Sheffield about when the bus was 2p. That was prior to it being deregulated, it was almost free,” she told the Mirror this morning. “It was, and still is, the most commonly used form of public transport.

“And it’s so important to me because it is people from poorer backgrounds that rely on them more than the wealthiest. It’s people who don’t have access to a car, it’s older people.

“And because it is those people, who don’t have much of a voice in the corridors of Westminster, that’s why it’s been overlooked for so long. That’s why I’m so delighted that this Labour government has put it at the heart of our mission-driven government.”

The government expects to pass its Better Buses Bill by the end of the year.

Mayors from across the country met up outside Liverpool’s Liver iconic Building flanked by franchised and publicly owned buses from Liverpool, London, Greater Manchester and Warrington. Ms Haigh was joined by Labour Mayors Steve Rotheram, Andy Burnham, Tracy Brabin, Kim McGuinness, Oliver Coppard and David Skaith

In her conference speech, Haigh said: “For too long – politicians in my position have cared too little, and its shown. Well, no longer.”

She promised to support local leaders up and down the country to “deliver integrated public transport that suits the needs and aspirations of the communities they serve, not the profit margins of private companies.” The Transport Secretary also said buses are an “engine of social justice” and are key to delivering Labour’s missions for Government, including growing the economy and breaking down the barriers to opportunity.

“We will overturn the ideological Tory ban on public ownership of bus companies,” she said. “A public transport system that is for the public.”

“Don’t let anyone ever tell you the colour of the rosette doesn’t matter. Don’t let anyone ever tell you politics doesn’t change things. Because of what we achieved together, we are not just cleaning up the mess of the last 14 years, we are ripping up the very roots of Thatcherism that have undermined and run down our transport system for decades.

“Privatisation of our transport is not pragmatism. It hasn’t spurred innovation. It hasn’t made things better. It belongs to a past that failed.

“And we don’t accept failure when it comes to the lives and livelihoods of the British people.”