HOLMES EXPOSES TRUE EXTENT OF LABOUR'S FAILED AND DISHONEST CONCESSIONARY BUS FARES SCHEME

Liberal Democrat MP for Chesterfield Paul Holmes has today written to both Gordon Brown and Transport Minister Paul Clark MP to demand urgent talks to prevent the catastrophic effects of the massive shortfall of funding for the Government's Concessionary Bus Fares Scheme.

After meeting with the Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council Ray Russell and the Council's Chief Executive Huw Bowen, Mr Holmes was shocked that the funding shortfall is not the £300,000 that was anticipated but an enormous £1.8 million.

Paul Holmes MP previously raised this issue in the House of Commons when he believed the shortfall to be closer to £300,000. The former Transport Minister Rosie Winterton dismissed his concerns about the impact that this would have on council taxpayers in Chesterfield as 'scaremongering.'

For the Council tax payers of Chesterfield Borough Council to meet the cost of a massively miscalculated Government scheme this year there are only three options:

To raise Council Tax by around 36% -completely unfair to local residents and impossible anyway as your Government will only allow a maximum Council Tax increase of 5% next year.

To wipe out the entire cash reserves of the council to pay this years bill -leaving nothing in reserve, nothing to pay for future years under funded Government schemes and destroying funds set aside to expand council services such as street cleaning.

To slash Council Services by nearly 11%, including 60-80 redundancies -in order to meet this bill year after year.

Commenting Paul Holmes MP said:

'This news will come as a bitter blow to taxpayers in Chesterfield already being hit by the effects of eleven years of Gordon Brown's mismanagement of our economy

'It leaves behind a massive threat that essential services may have to be cut to make up the enormous shortfall of yet another dishonest, unworkable and ill thought out New Labour gimmick designed in the corridors of Whitehall but unworkable on the streets of Chesterfield and Staveley.

'Gordon Brown and New Labour have been caught out on this scheme - why only give councils the money for the scheme based on a budget based on the dreams and whims of Whitehall and not on the reality?

'I have today written to Gordon Brown and the Minister responsible Paul Clark MP to demand an urgent meeting.

'The people of Chesterfield must not be forced to bear the costs of yet another New Labour Whitehall farce.

'It is simply outrageous for the Government to put the cost of yet another failed scheme on the people of Chesterfield and Staveley who are already feeling the bite of Brown's bundled economy.'