98 per cent opposed to school bus cuts

More than 3000 people responded to North Lanarkshire’s nowdropped proposals to reduce school transport eligibility – with nearly 98 per cent expressing opposition.

A total of 1288 emails and letters from concerned families and community representatives were sent to the council, as well as 1793 official consultation forms and six petitions with a combined total of 2142 signatures.

Only 26 people supported either proposal, to provide transport at the statutory minimum level only for pupils living more than two miles from their primary school or three miles from secondaries; with a further 41 undecided.

Concerns raised included safety, weather, lack or cost of public transport, parents being unable to accompany children to school, a resultant increase in car journeys to school, and the impact on youngsters’ health, wellbeing and attainment.

The public response was outlined in a report of the consultation presented to the policy and resources committee, where members unanimously agreed that the £2.4 million cost-saving measure should officially be abandoned.

SNP councillor Steven Bonnar said: “I welcome the decision to halt this in its tracks – it’s a dead duck, and so it should be.

“We didn’t need a consultation on this and there shouldn’t have been one; parents, grandparents and anybody who has children in their lives will be questioning why this needed said.

“North Lanarkshire is leading the way for the rest of Scotland [on school transport]; when we get things right, we should be proud of it.”

Council leader Jim Logue said: “Nobody in here wants to bring forward what was part of that consulation. Our budget has been cut and it’s starting to hit more and more.

“This was because of finance, for a saving of £2.4m; so if you don’t consider this, the reality is that you have to go back to the education budget and find that.

“My challenge to anyone who thinks it’s right to ask children to walk [a maximum of ] one and two miles is to take that challenge to the Scottish Government and make it legislation, instead of it being a discretionary spend. There are only four authorities providing transport at one mile for primary and two for secondary.”

Meanwhile, MSPs clashed over the consultation in written Scottish Parliament exchanges after Coatbridge representative Fulton MacGregor lodged a motion on the transport U-turn.

The former local councillor laid down a Holyrood statement saying the decision followed “a consultation forced through by the Labour/ Conservative administration”; and which went on to urge “the Labour leadership in North Lanarkshire to end its continued attacks on education”.

Par ty MSP Graham Simpson, the Cent ral Scotland Conservative member, put forward an amendment referring instead to the minority Labour administration, describing the original motion as “a cheap shot”.

Labour member Elaine Smith separately responded, criticising “reductions of almost £ 200 million to the council budget by the Scottish Government over the past 10 years” and added: “The Scottish Government’s guidance on school transport [is] outdated, [meaning] an eight- year- old could be expected to walk three miles to school”.

I welcome the decision to halt this in its tracks – it’s a dead duck, and so it should be.

Challenge Council leader Jim Logue