Coach industry put centre stage in powerful speech by MP

The plight of the coach industry was laid bare in the House of Commons yesterday (10 November) in a powerful speech by Emma Hardy MP as part of a debate on support for SMEs during Covid 19 – see video of debate below.

Hardy, Labour MP for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle, called for sector-specific support for the coach sector, including classifying coach operators as either tourism or essential travel so that they can access grants; liaison with high street banks about the criteria for lending coronavirus interruption loans to the industry; support from the Government to help the industry secure extended finance payment holidays; and consideration of retrospective low-emission-based grants for coach companies that have invested in greener vehicles. Hardy also suggested that there should be a top-up of school transport fees arguing that many companies run these services at a loss as they are normally subsidised by other work.

“There has been no sector-specific support for coach companies,” said Hardy, “unlike bus, rail and light rail operators. For some companies, the furlough scheme has been the only source of support until this point. The industry experts estimate that four companies in 10 could go bust and 27,000 jobs could be lost if no support is made available. Furlough has helped, but many coaches have fixed costs. One owner told me that ‘fixed costs will kill the industry prior to the furlough ending’.”

To back up her arguments, Hardy used contributions from coach operators including CTA members, Kevin Mayne, Maynes Coaches and Alan Acklam, Acklams Coaches. She also related heart-rending accounts from a Dorset coach operator refused a CBILS loan.

In concluding Hardy said: “Coaches are not just for displaying dubious political slogans during referendums and elections. Our country needs them, and now the industry needs us. I look forward to working with the government to get it the support it needs.”

And for a succinct explanation of the contribution of coaches to UK life, here is the quote from Kevin Mayne that the MP repeated to her colleagues in the House:

“We take children to school, grieving individuals to funerals, vulnerable people to disabled care facilities and turn up in high risk situations with shiny shoes to keep the nation moving. We are waiting at the station when the train stops and a rail replacement is called upon, we are behind the NHS when the country stops moving and we are truly at the heart of national transport.

“The coach industry has always been there for the nation. When the train stops, you get a coach to take you where you need to go—whether it be a job interview, school play or a hospital appointment. When planes are grounded, it’s a coach and a driver who are sent out to keep the people moving forward to their next destination. If everything in the city grinds to a halt and there needs to be an evacuation—we help. Trust me, I have been there personally.”