Whether it will introduce a short bill to amend transport legislation, to simplify the Scottish bus franchising powers to bring them in lin…

I have no plans of modifying the franchising model in the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019. Changing primary legislation would take time to deliver and any proposals to bring the Scottish powers in line with England would require us to revisit the entire approach to franchising.Development of any new primary legislation in this area is likely to be a lengthy process and could not be undertaken before the end of this parliamentary session. Any changes to the legislation now could significantly impact Strathclyde Partnership for Transport’s (SPT) plans for developing its franchising proposals, as well as create uncertainty for all local authorities who may be exploring this option. Such a move would also push Scotland further behind England in delivering bus franchising.