In Wednesday’s Prime Minister’s Questions, Warrington South MP Andy Carter asked Mr Johnson about funding for buses in Warrington. The Conservative MP asked the PM whether he agreed that funding pledged for a new fleet of electric buses should be spent on British-made buses.
Mr Carter said: “The Government’s commitment of £25million for a new electric bus fleet in Warrington will have a transformational effect on transport across Warrington.”
He then asked whether the Prime Minister agreed with him that the “right way” to spend that £25m is by buying “British-made buses”. He added that awarding the contract to a British manufacturer would be "supporting highly-skilled jobs, manufacturing jobs, right across the United Kingdom.”
Mr Carter’s request was met with rallying cries of support from his fellow MPs before the PM addressed him as a “great champion for Warrington”. In response, Boris Johnson praised the use of British-made buses already in use in urban areas across the country.
He said: “Warrington has secured £20m, Mr Speaker, for new zero-emission buses. “And I’m delighted to say that a statistic I can barely believe, but it is in my brief, that 80 percent of buses in Britain’s urban areas are already produced domestically.”
In response, Mr Carter received significant backing from fellow MPs who can be seen nodding their heads and cheering in a show of support for this impressive figure.
Commenting more widely on his calls to buy British, Mr Carter said:
“The £20m funding for buses and £5m for an electric bus depot bring environmental benefits to the town but will allow reduce high maintenance costs meaning the bus company can run more frequent services across the town, connecting different locations and offering additional services in the evenings and at weekend.
Warrington can choose to spend this money with a business based overseas or support manufacturing jobs in the UK, which in turn benefits British families.
When the bus company are considering which new buses to choose as their preferred supplier I urge them to back one of our great British bus companies that have a great track record in delivering quickly and in a cost effective way.”
