MORE than £100,000 that should have been given to community groups to improve local transport services was handed back to the government instead.

Cumbria County Council came under fierce criticism yesterday for giving the money back to Westminster instead of helping struggling, cut-off rural areas.

James Airey, county council leader of the Conservative Group, said it was an "utter disgrace" that the money – about £104,000 – had not been given to community groups.

He said: "We should have had better publicity on this. Community transport is really struggling and they were not aware this money was made available.

"This is a serious matter, it's a disgrace. Unlike the large amount of councils, Cumbria County Council has chosen not to spend all the money we have been given to them to support bus services.

"I do want an apology to rural communities, to people working hard right across Cumbria to support rural buses."

But Keith Little, Labour councillor and cabinet member for highways and transport, defended the money's return and refused to apologise for it.

Cumbria County Council received £480,000 from the government in Bus Service Operator Grants to support bus services.

The council stopped subsidising commercial local bus services in February 2014 and since then many have closed or been taken on by community groups.

The BSOG supports areas such as Cumbria Community Transport, the Rural Wheels Scheme and the Voluntary Car Scheme.

Mr Little said: "I'm not going to apologise on behalf of Cumbria County Council.

"To the communities that have come forward to Cumbria County Council, our offices are out there working with them.

"If we had kept the money and said nothing about keeping it, you would have been the first to say we had to give it back.

"How could we have spent it when no community projects came forward? They did know about it."

Mr Little added that he was not going to apologise for the effort the Cumbria County Council team had put in.

He said: "I think we have done as much as we can possibly do."