Overview
- The Department for Transport said councils can use their allocations to let concessionary pass holders travel before 9.30am if they choose.
- More than £1 billion is confirmed for buses in 2025–26, including £712 million for local authorities and £243 million for operators.
- MPs voted 300–69 against removing the national 9.30am weekday limit, with ministers citing the scheme’s roughly £700 million annual cost.
- Eligibility for older people will be delayed by the State Pension age rising from 66 to 67, with changes starting in April and completing by 2028.
- In reply to calls for free travel for care leavers, ministers said councils may introduce local fares initiatives using their bus funding.