Cuts to the Welsh Assembly Government budget could have a damaging effect on the provision of bus services in Wales, Assembly Member Joyce Watson has warned. Mrs Watson claimed that whilst a review of how public money is spent must take place, the voice of rural Wales must be heard.
The Labour Member for Mid and West Wales, who is also the Party’s Rural Affairs Spokesperson, has called on the government to stand up for bus services in rural areas where train services are poor.
Speaking in the debating chamber at the National Assembly for Wales, Mrs Watson said:
“Train services in rural Wales are not as effective as they are in urban areas. There is a need in rural communities for regular and reliable bus services in order for people to go about doing their daily business. Thousands of people depend on bus services and it is important that the voice of people who live in rural Wales is heard in Cardiff Bay where decisions will be made.”
The Conservative Chancellor George Osborne has announced that Whitehall departments must prepare for cuts in their budgets of up to 40%, an equivalent cut in the Welsh transport budget would be potentially very damaging.
“These are tough economic times and we have to face up to them, however the dependency of rural communities on public transport compared to urban areas must be taken into account,” claimed Joyce Watson.
