Agenda item

This report puts forward for consideration and comment the proposed Cabinet Member decision to introduce a Young Person’s Travel Pass for 11-16 year olds for the academic year 2014/15 which provides free bus travel in Kent from 6am to 7pm on Monday to Friday.  The Young Person’s Travel Pass will replace the existing Kent Freedom Pass scheme.

 

The cost of the Kent 16+ Travel Card will be reduced from £520 to £400, this is the only proposed change to this scheme.

(Items B3 and B3a)

 

(1)     The Cabinet Committee received a report of the Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport and the Corporate Director for Growth, Environment and Transport which sought endorsement of the proposed Cabinet Member decision to introduce a Young Person’s Travel Pass for 11-16 year olds for the academic year 2014/15 providing free bus travel in Kent from 6am to 7pm on Monday to Friday and to reducing the cost of the Kent 16+ Travel Card from £520 to £400.  In addition a petition had been received and had met the number of signatures required for a debate.

 

(2)     The Chairman clarified that she would be taking Item B3 and Item B3a together.

 

(3)  David Hall stated that two major influences on the proposals before the Committee were the Medium Term Financial Plan, which required savings in the current financial year, and a petition, signed by approximately 16,000, people to extend the 11-16 pass to 16-19 year olds.

 

(4)     Following a report to the December 2013 meeting of the Environment, Highways & Waste Cabinet Committee comments and feedback were received to which the Council listened carefully and devised a revised scheme called the Young Persons Travel Pass for 11-16 year olds. 

(5)     This scheme retained the basic principle of the Freedom Pass and would provide free travel during the academic year on Kent bus services but limited to term time, Monday to Friday and between the hours of 6am to 7pm.

 

(6)     The initial cost to the recipient had been raised to £200, now payable in two instalments.  In order to assist those in receipt of free school meals, a reduced price of £100 will be charged and young carers and looked after children would continue to receive the pass free of charge.

 

(7)    The proposal for the 16+ Pass was that the price be reduced from £520 to £400 and that it would continue to offer unlimited bus travel in Kent.

 

(8)     The key findings of the review and responses received from nearly 4,000 people were included in the papers.

 

(9)     In order that the points made by the petitioners could also be considered a statement was read out by the clerk from the lead petitioner, Lynne Miller.

 

(10)  It was proposed and seconded that the recommendations be agreed.  Mr Caller raised a point of order that he had submitted an amendment to the Chairman and that this should be debated before any vote on the recommendations within the report.

 

(11)  The Chairman agreed and read out the recommendations contained within the report as follows:

 

•        Introduce a new young person’s travel pass for 11 – 16 year olds providing free bus travel from 6am to 7pm Monday to Friday commencing at the start of the academic year through to the 31 July

•        The pass will cost £200 but charged at £100 for those entitled to free school meals and free to young carers and looked after children.

•        An option of two 6 monthly payments will be offered

•        The 16+ pass be reduced from £520 to £400 and will continue to offer unlimited bus travel in Kent

 

The amendment was read as follows:

 

•        An urgent review of the proposed 16+ Pass is undertaken to examine the cost variance between the proposal to continue with unlimited bus travel in Kent and the alternative proposal suggested by petitioners to extend the young person’s travel pass scheme to 16 – 19 year olds.

 

It was suggested that bullet point 4 of the paper’s recommendations be deleted and replaced with the above.

 

Mr Eddy seconded the amendment.

 

(12) Mr Chittenden asked, if debate was to be curtailed, could the two items be debated separately.

 

(13)  Clarification   was   given   that   as   a   proposal   had   been   put   that   the recommendations be agreed and an amendment had been proposed and seconded the debate was now on the amendment.  It was at the Chairman’s discretion as to whether the two items, B3 and B3a, be debated separately and any Member could request that this was the case.

 

(14) Detailed debate followed regarding the benefits and disbenefits of a discussion on the petition and whether it were possible for the Committee to do so.

 

(15)  The Democratic Services Manager (Executive) read out the Petition Debate Scheme from the Constitution Appendix 4 Part 1 as follows:

 

Petition Debate Scheme

 

1.22 (1)     The  petition  organiser,  or  a  named  representative,  will  be  given  the opportunity to present the petition at the meeting and speak for up to 5 minutes.

 

          (2)     If the lead petitioner, or their named representative, does not attend the County Council meeting then the petition may be considered in their absence.

 

          (3)     Local Members will be given the opportunity to speak for up to three minutes each.

 

          (4)    If the Petition relates to an executive matter then the Cabinet Member will be given the opportunity to respond at the end of the debate for up to 5 minutes

 

          (5)     All other speakers will speak for up to three minutes each.

 

          (6)     Debate on the petition shall not exceed 45 minutes. The Chairman has discretion to hold a combined debate on more than one petition if the subject matters are similar.

 

                             (7)     In responding to the petition, the County Council may decide to:

 

(a)     take the action the petition requests

 

(b)     not to take the action requested for reasons put forward in the debate

 

(c)     to commission further investigation into the matter, for example by a relevant committee or

 

(d)     where the issue is one on which the Cabinet is required to make the final decision, to make recommendations to inform that decision.

 

(16)  Mr Caller stated that, as per paragraph (7)(c) of the Petition Debate Scheme, the amendment requested a further review of the proposed 16+ Pass to examine the cost  variances  between  the  proposed  scheme  and  the  alternative  proposal suggested by petitioners.   Some of the proposals and suggestions made at the December meeting were now included in the proposed decision and he suspected that some of the suggestions and proposals from the 3,563 responses were also incorporated but as the responses were not given this could not be quantified.

 

(17)   Dr Eddy stated that the petition highlighted a whole series of changes coming into Education including the extension of the school leaving age to 18.  The amendment was a request to review the potential impact and cost implications of these changes in a democratic way openly and transparently.

 

(18)  The Cabinet Member stated that costs were quantified in the report as follows:

 

If the County Council were to further halve the cost of the Kent 16+ Travel Card to £200 this would require the authority having to find an additional £1,500,000 to cover lost income.  There would also be greater additional costs associated with an anticipated increase in pass holders, journeys made and therefore the reimbursement due to bus companies.  A halving in the cost of the Young Persons’ Travel Pass to £50 for those entitled to free school meals would require an additional £100,000.   There is no provision for these additional costs within the budgets allocated for these schemes.

 

(19)  Mr Baldock stated that the response to the consultation, 500 times more than the response to a consultation on one the earlier items, showed that this was an issue that meant a lot to a great deal of people.  The amendment would go some way to KCC giving the petition support.

 

(21)  John Burr stated that the budget approved by County Council in January 2014 for 2014-15 had reduced the Freedom Pass budget by £3.9m. Mr Burr explained that if the recommendations were not agreed there would be an impact on the ability to issue passes for the new academic year.

 

(22)  Mr Bowles proposed, Mr Harrison seconded that the question be put and a vote should be called.  Following some debate over procedural correctness a vote was taken on the question being put and the result was as follows:

 

For (7)

 

Mr A Bowles, Mr M Harrison, Mrs S Hohler, Mr J Ozog, Mr C Pearman, Mrs P Stockell and Mr A Wickham

 

Against (4)

 

Mr M Baldock, Mr C Caller, Dr M Eddy and Mr B MacDowall

 

Abstain (2)

 

Mr I Chittenden, Mr P Harman

 

Carried

 

(23)  Mr Caller stated that the amendment asked only for a review in order to consider the input of thousands of people.

 

(24) The Chairman then put the amendment to the vote and the result was as follows:

 

For (6)

 

Mr M Baldock, Mr C Caller, Mr I Chittenden, Dr M Eddy, Mr P Harman and Mr B MacDowall

 

Against (7)

 

Mr A Bowles, Mr M Harrison, Mrs S Hohler, Mr J Ozog, Mr C Pearman, Mrs P Stockell and Mr A Wickham

Lost

 

(25) Following the vote on the amendment being lost the original recommendations as proposed by Mrs Hohler and seconded by Mr Pearman were put to the vote   and the result was as follows:

 

For (7)

 

Mr A Bowles, Mr M Harrison, Mrs S Hohler, Mr J Ozog, Mr C Pearman, Mrs P Stockell and Mr A Wickham

 

Against (3)

 

Mr M Baldock, Mr P Harman and Mr B MacDowall

 

Abstain (3)

 

Mr C Caller, Mr I Chittenden and Dr M Eddy

 

Carried

 

(26)  RESOLVED that the Cabinet Committee recommend that the Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport agrees for Kent County Council to introduce;

 

•        A Young Person’s Travel Pass for 11-16 year olds providing free bus travel from 6am to 7pm on Monday to Friday commencing at the start of the academic year through to 31st July.

 

•        The pass will cost £200 but charged at £100 for those entitled to free school meals and free to young carers and looked after children.

 

•        An option of two six monthly payments will be offered.

 

•        The 16+ Pass be reduced from £520 to £400 and will continue to offer unlimited bus travel in Kent.

 

A response would be issued by the Cabinet Member to the Lead Petitioner as the agreement of the recommendations in the report was also a refusal to act on the request of the petition.