Land near an unnamed bus company depot that the council intends to buy may be included in the purchase as part of its housing strategy.

Proposals to buy business assets – including land and buildings – of a bus company to in order to keep school and local routes running were backed earlier this year.

Next week Pembrokeshire County Council’s cabinet will be asked to or two fields that have become available and “not required for the provision of in-house passenger transport” in the purchase.

It will be paid for via the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) and “land banked ready for future development” a report to cabinet on Monday, July 11 states.

The company to be bought provides 23 school routes and six public routes at a cost of £900,000 a year, with the potential for a new contract to cost an additional £300,000 but bringing it in house there is predicted to be “minimal additional costs compared to our existing contract,” a previous report stated.

The purchase of the assets is said to have a net cost of £6.5million, a report notes, compared to £6.6million for ‘do nothing’ and higher costs for purchasing alternative depots and encouraging local operators to increase provision.

Due diligence services have been carried out, although more may be required, cabinet will hear, and it is recommended to approve the extra purchase and financing options.