CONSERVATIVES in London are calling for an end to costly free travel perks handed out to friends of employees who work on the capital’s bus, train and tube network.
The gold-plated handouts cost the London transport network over £22million every year, according to the shocking report by Andrew Boff, leader of the Greater London Authority Tory group.
The cash saved by scrapping the free travel cards for staff and one friend or relative could pay for London’s firefighters to travel for free instead, as well as 175 new routemaster buses and an extension of the popular Boris bike cycle scheme south of the river.
Mr Boff said: “It is a strange and puzzling phenomenon that, in this time of financial constraint, Transport for London offers, as an employee perk, free and non-taxable travel on the TfL network for nominees of their staff.
“These Nominee Passes, as they are known, are not only open to a family member, they are also available to any one person residing in the staff member’s household – be they a lodger or a flatmate.
“Neither the Metropolitan Police Service nor the London Fire Brigade, which are widely considered as more vital Blue Light organisations, offer such passes to nominees of their staff. So why does TfL continue this unaffordable and unfair practice?”
Transport staff are handed their travel for free and given another pass for a friend or relative living at the same address.
The Conservatives have calculated that free trips on the network will cost London over £111million over five years, and yesterday a spokesperson for Transport for London confirmed the perk does lose them cash.
But she disputed the £22million a year cost, claiming it is more like £7million instead and said the perk is important so London can attract the best staff.
She added: “This benefit is a long-standing part of the terms and conditions of TfL staff.
“Were it to be withdrawn it would result in immediate claims for increased pay and almost certainly lead to widespread industrial action for a net financial loss.”