Last year Flintshire County Council in North Wales was told to find £18million in savings. The council, which is controlled by a coalition of thirty-one Labour councillors and a ragbag of independents, has chopped and snipped in several areas.

During deliberations on savings last summer, the council decided to examine the area of school transport. They noted that students attending Catholic faith schools who were not baptised were availing of school bus services provided by the council.

In their wisdom, the council decided that they would remove this service from pupils who were not able to prove, with either a baptismal certificate or a letter from a priest, that they were members of the Catholic Church.

While the policy was under review, the council's website stated that “the proposed changes were intended to produce a fair, equitable and sustainable transport policy.”

The new policy kicked in this September and the council has instructed all bus drivers to check students' passes as they get on the bus.

Last week the Daily Post in Wales reported that some “parents were ‘furious’ to learn their children will not be allowed to use the bus [even] as paid passengers.”

The report quotes parent Emily Hill who said that during “consultations last year [parents] were always led to believe that [their] children would still be able to use the bus and pay.”

According to Ms.Hill parents were told the service would cost about £55 a term.

This, however, is not the case and the council have acknowledged as much.

In a statement they clarify that “if....there are any spare seats on school contract vehicles they may be sold at a concessionary rate subject to complying with legal requirements; that being that spare seats must not be sold where there is a public service bus running along the route.”

According to Daily Post journalist Sarah Hodgson “the school itself are not supportive of the measure” but as it is the council who are providing the service there is not much that they can do.

For her part Emily Hill says that the measure is discriminatory and that it makes “people stand out based on their religion”.

Indeed it would appear that the decision was taken by people who forget that school for many is the one time when you don't want to stand out from the crowd. For the sake of £100,000 was it really necessary to put children through the possible shame, albeit perceived rather than real, of having to get public transport?

That a county council would be so stingy to invent such a thinly veiled loop hole to worm through is alarming. Never mind that these are Labour councillors, they are supposed to be leaders, here to set an example to children in a spirit of community and egalitarianism. These are the men and women who look at Islamic State and ask why some British Muslims join it while in the same breath they promote segregation to save a paltry sum of money.

“There is enough anger in the world about religion,” said Emily Hill. “So why add more.”