David Lammy MP joins the call to keep bus travel free for Tottenham's children and young people.

Wednesday, 31 January 2007

David Lammy MP, Haringey Labour Leader George Meehan and local London Assembly Member Joanne McCartney AM have attacked London Tories as “despicable” after the Tories moved an amendment to Labour’s draft London budget yesterday, to get rid of free bus travel for London’s children & young people. David Lammy said: “Locally, regionally and nationally it is only Labour who has been committed to delivering free and subsidised bus travel for our kids and older people. This latest Tory tactic to roll back our progress, risks reducing the mobility of thousands of Tottenham's most vulnerable residents – depriving them of access to valuable community, education and friendship networks across London. When will the Tories learn that access to public transport should be for the many and not the few?” Speaking after the debate at the London Assembly yesterday, Labour’s Joanne McCartney AM said: “Labour’s free travel scheme allows children and young people in fulltime education to travel without charge on the city’s buses and trams. Tory plans to take this away would cost families in Enfield and Haringey around £350 for each child every year. Once again the Tories have shown their true colours: attacking ordinary families and trying to savage London’s public services.” Joanne added: “If the Tories ever took control of London, local people would pay hundreds more for their kids just to travel about. This scheme was a Labour election pledge that we promised to deliver and it has been met.” Haringey Labour Leader Councillor George Meehan said: “This latest Tory attack on children comes just days after they went for London’s pensioners. Tory-run London Councils went to the House of Lords to try and abolish the Mayor of London’s ability to guarantee the Freedom Pass for elderly and disabled Londoners. The Tories are running a despicable campaign to attack London’s most vulnerable and deny them their current free travel arrangements. Only Labour can be trusted to safeguard free travel for children, young people and elderly and disabled people in London.”

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