Local Transport Bill [HL]

Obviously, we keep policy under review at all times. We have discussions with local government over time, as the current national scheme has been introduced. No doubt local authorities will want to discuss it with us if they think that it is a particular need. The best thing is to tackle the root cause of the problem, which is homelessness, and we have been doing that very successfully. Our aim is to halve the number of households living in temporary accommodation to something approaching 50,000 by 2010. By the third quarter of 2003, we had already reduced the number of households accepted as homeless under the legislation by some 54 per cent. The key objective for the present is to successfully introduce the national bus concession next April. Now is not the time to make further legislative changes, without proper planning and consultation. I therefore urge the noble Lord to withdraw this amendment. We have the lowest number of households in temporary accommodation in some long time. Dealing with homelessness is the priority. It may be that this issue can be returned to in the future, but we currently think it best to concentrate our efforts on making the current scheme workable and seeing how that beds in. If local authorities wish to raise the issue of homeless people and their particular needs at different times as we review policy implementation, no doubt that will be a constructive approach.