A pledge to help young people enjoy free bus travel from the Labour Party has been criticised by the leader of Dartford Council.

The comments come after Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn announced his plans to allow under 25s to use bus services for free.

Jonathon Hawkes, leader of the Labour opposition in Dartford Council, said the promise will “give help where it is needed most.”

In a statement, he said: “Look at the rising costs of education, the near impossible job of getting on the housing ladder, stagnant wages and insecure employment – the last eight years of Conservative government have not been kind to young people in Dartford.”

He added: “Labour is committed to investing in young people, the Conservatives are making their lives more difficult and more expensive.”

The promise, announced by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn on Thursday, will give extra money to local authorities who move towards public ownership of local bus services.

According to Dartford Labour the move would benefit up to 18,000 young people in the area and could save them up to £1,000 per year.

Deputy leader of Labour, Josh Jones, criticised Kent County Council for cutting routes to bus services and said he wanted to see councils “take back control of their buses.”

But the leader of Dartford Council, Jeremy Kite, denied this accusation and insisted the council pays a “huge subsidy” to private bus companies, and demands that money is "well spent" by exploring other transport options if they are better value for money.

He said the proposal from the Labour Party was ‘uncosted’, adding: “There’s no such thing as a free bus ride.”

Mr Kite accused Labour of not thinking the proposal through. He said the proposal would be “another huge amount of money that they will casually admit would be bunged on the Country’s credit card for future generations to pay.”

He confirmed he was a “big, big supporter of public transport” but that it needed to be used “in a sustainable way.”