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Tory plans to ban councils from running their own public bus services have been given a massive thumbs down by voters.

Nearly six out of ten (57%) think Town Halls should be able to set up new public bus companies with 22% opposed in new polling released today.

Even among Tory voters twice as many believe councils should be allowed to run their own buses (54% to 25%) - a show of support for local publicly-owned services.

The Survation poll of 1,000 adults for the campaign group We Own It comes as the deadline closes tomorrow for the House of Commons’ Transport Committee consultation on the controversial Bus Services Bill.

It includes a clause - branded “nasty and mean-minded” - that would ban councils in England from setting up new municipal bus companies.

(Image: Getty)

The polling also found that over four times as many people want more public ownership of buses than want more private ownership (46% to 11%). 26% want to see no change.

Cat Hobbs, director of We Own It, said: “We know that local public ownership of buses can work because cities like Reading and Nottingham are already running their buses and having great success.

“The government plan to ban councils from setting up their own bus companies is completely ideological. Councils should be allowed to run buses directly if that’s the best solution.

“After nearly 30 years of deregulation, bus privatisation has led to falling passenger numbers, service cuts and huge fare increases in most areas outside of London. It’s time for buses to work for people not profit.”

Labour Co-operative Party life peer Lord Kennedy of Southwark criticised the clause in the bill. He told the House of Lords: "It does nothing whatever to improve bus services for people—rather, it is merely a piece of ​political dogma from the Conservative Party…. This clause goes too far."

Last week Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he would bring the railways back under public ownership and would give councils the power to run their own municipal bus services.

(Image: Dan Kitwood)

Councils could also opt for a franchise model, similar to Transport for London’s running of bus services, which could bring in revenue of £506m a year in regions outside the capital.

Municipal bus companies are common in other European countries such as Austria, France and Germany.

Regulation would require up to £340m a year of “excess profits” to be reinvested by bus companies into their services.

There are 12 local authority-owned bus companies across the UK, from a small service in rural Dumfries and Galloway, to large scale operations in cities including Edinburgh, Nottingham and Reading.

In 4 of the last 5 years, local authority run buses have won Bus Operator of the Year at the Bus Awards.