The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reason her Department has increased the small claims limit for minor whiplash claims.
Sir Oliver Heald
The government remains concerned about the number and cost of low value personal injury claims and has announced robust new measures to tackle them – including raising the small claims limit for personal injury claims to £5,000. This change has not yet been made.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department has taken to reduce the incidence of self-harm in prisons.
Mr Sam Gyimah
The Government is committed to reducing the incidence of self-harm in prisons. All prisons are required to have procedures in place to identify, manage and support people who are at risk of harm to themselves. These include the Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) process, which is a prisoner-centred, flexible care planning system for prisoners identified as at risk of suicide or self-harm.
An additional £10m of new funding, supplemented by £2.9m from existing budgets, was recently allocated to the 69 prisons with the most concerning levels of violence and self-harm. The Justice Secretary is clear that safety in prisons is fundamental to the proper functioning of our justice system and a vital part of our reform plans.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Zac Goldsmith on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to recommendation 22 of the Environmental Audit Committee in its First Report of Session 2015-16, on the Airports Commission Report: carbon emissions, air quality and noise, HC 389, what his policy is on implementing that recommendation as it applies to requiring Heathrow Airport to set out proposals for mitigation.
Mr John Hayes
The Airports Commission shortlisted three airport expansion schemes, two at Heathrow and one at Gatwick. The Government accepted the Commission’s shortlist in December 2015, and has since been undertaking a programme of further work, including on mitigation, to support a decision on a preferred scheme. We are carefully considering the evidence in relation to all three schemes, including the Airports Commission’s comprehensive work and the recommendations in the Environmental Audit Committee’s interim report.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Zac Goldsmith on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to page 307 of the Airports Commission Final Report, published in July 2015, what steps his Department is taking to assess options for a legislative process for permanently banning a fourth runway at Heathrow Airport.
Mr John Hayes
The Airports Commission shortlisted three airport expansion schemes, two at Heathrow and one at Gatwick. The Government accepted the Commission’s shortlist in December 2015 and is considering all of the evidence very carefully before reaching a view on its preferred scheme. It is vitally important that we get this decision right.
The Government is not providing a running commentary on this work and it would not be appropriate to opine on the Commission’s scheme-specific recommendations before an announcement on its preference.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 15 October 2015 to Question 10706, and to the letter sent by Network Rail to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Yardley on 14 July 2016, what the expected timescale is for accessibility alterations for Stechford railway station.
Paul Maynard
Network Rail have completed the option selection process for the Access for All scheme at Stechford and are working on a detailed design for the project. The Network Rail sponsor for the project would be happy to meet the hon Member to discuss plans for improving access at the station.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what rail infrastructure funding his Department is providing to each region in each of the next three years.
Paul Maynard
The Department for Transport provides funding for rail infrastructure in England and Wales, which makes up part of the total funding requirement for Network Rail to deliver its Control Period 5 commitments between 2014 and 2019. Government funding is not divided by region.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how the proposals contained in the Bus Services Bill will improve the ability of people with visual or hearing impairments to make use of public transport.
Andrew Jones
We are committed to building transport networks which work for everyone, including ensuring that disabled people have the same access to transport as other members of society.
The Bus Services Bill will enable the development of bus services which reflect better the communities they serve, giving authorities the tools to ensure that local transport truly works for everyone.
Where the local authority feels it is appropriate, the provision of accessible information can be made mandatory in franchising contracts. This could also be achieved through enhanced partnership schemes if there is agreement from the majority of bus operators.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans he has to re-establish the Economic Affairs (Airports) sub-Committee.
Ben Gummer
A full updated list of the Cabinet Committees will be published in the coming weeks. In line with the previous arrangements, there will be a Cabinet sub-Committee to consider airport capacity in the South East of England.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether HS2 Ltd has used (a) InSAR surveys and (b) other survey methods to survey ground movements on the proposed route of phase 2B of HS2 between Crewe and Manchester/Leeds.
Andrew Jones
HS2 Ltd has not commissioned any satellite (InSAR) surveys nor (to date) any purchase of existing/historical data or bespoke analysis of that.
HS2 Ltd has carried out two Lidar surveys of the proposed route of phase 2B of HS2 between Crewe and Manchester, with a view to comparing the two datasets to appraise ground movements in the time between the two surveys. This is work in progress. Other available Lidar data (made available by the Environment Agency) has been used to manually appraise ground movements of specific locations in the saltfield.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if the Government will make it its policy not to take a decision on the location of an additional runway until its reviews of UK airspace and the Aviation Policy Framework have been completed.
Mr John Hayes
The Government remains fully committed to delivering the important infrastructure projects it has set out, including delivering runway capacity on the timetable set out by Sir Howard Davies.
In the coming weeks the Government will carefully consider all of the evidence before reaching a view on its preferred scheme.