Bus Services (No.2) Bill: Third Reading

What happened: The House of Commons gave final approval to the Bus Services (No.2) Bill on 10 September 2025, passing its Third Reading by 362 votes to 87. Third Reading is the last opportunity MPs have to vote on a bill in the Commons before it passes to the House of Lords, and a successful vote means the legislation proceeds to the upper chamber in its finalised form.

Why it matters: The Bill advances reforms to how bus services in England are organised, expanding the powers of local authorities to take greater control over their bus networks, including provisions that enable public ownership and operation of bus services. This represents a significant shift from the deregulated model that has governed most English bus services outside London since the 1980s. Passengers in areas where local authorities choose to use these new powers could see changes to routes, fares, and service reliability, as councils would gain tools to plan networks in the public interest rather than leaving decisions entirely to private operators.

The politics: The vote divided almost entirely along party lines. All Labour, Labour and Co-operative, Liberal Democrat, and Green MPs who voted backed the Bill, while every Conservative MP who voted opposed it, along with one Reform UK MP and one independent. The Conservatives have consistently opposed the Bill's approach throughout its Commons stages, arguing it represents unwelcome state intervention in markets. On the same day, MPs rejected two amendments at Report Stage and a third amendment, indicating the government successfully defended the Bill's core text against attempts to alter it before Third Reading.