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  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what impact assessment has been conducted on the change in the method of payment of Disability Living Allowance to being solely into a bank account.

    Justin Tomlinson

    There has been no change to the method of payment policy in relation to benefit and pension payments.

    DWP is committed to battling financial exclusion and helping more people to move towards, and benefit from, mainstream banking. Direct Payment into a bank, building society or credit union account is the most efficient, secure and reliable way of making payments and is the preferred way to make benefit payments. Government paying departments would like all of their customers to benefit from the advantages of a mainstream account.

    Although the majority of benefit and pension payments are paid into a bank account we do recognise that some customers remain unable to access such services. Arrangements are in place to ensure those customers can access their money.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidelines his Department issues on continued payment of housing benefit when a person remains in hospital for longer than 52 weeks.

    Justin Tomlinson

    Guidance for local authority staff about temporary absence from home is contained in the Housing Benefit Manuals on GOV.UK. The guidance for absences of up to 52 weeks is covered in paragraphs 3.530 – 3.534 of Chapter A3.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/236950/hbgm-a3-liability-to-make-payments.pdf

    “

  • Stewart Malcolm McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Stewart Malcolm McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stewart Malcolm McDonald on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has asked Vauxhall to reclassify the root cause of the risk of fire in Zafira B models that have been subject to vehicle safety recalls to include premature corrosion of the blower motor.

    Andrew Jones

    Vauxhall has not been requested to reclassify the cause of the fires on the Vauxhall Zafira B models that have been subject to vehicle safety recalls, to include premature corrosion of the blower motor. The investigations into the cause of these fires has determined that the fires are occurring as a result of a manipulated heater motor resistor, or under very specific circumstances, the degradation of the heater motor resistor, which can affect the effectiveness of the unit.

    Vauxhall has, however, included the replacement of the heater blower motor as part of its action to remove the risk to those using Zafiras.

  • Helen Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Helen Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Jones on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made on finalising the route for the second stage of High Speed 2; and when he expects to announce the decision on that route.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    In November last year the Secretary of State confirmed plans for accelerating construction of Phase Two from the West Midlands to Crewe so that it opens in 2027, six years earlier than planned.

    We are developing our plans for the rest of Phase Two and we intend to make a decision on the rest of the route in autumn 2016.

  • Stewart Malcolm McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Stewart Malcolm McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stewart Malcolm McDonald on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that the independent testing of Vauxhall Zafiras meets the aims set out for that independent testing.

    Andrew Jones

    The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is working closely with Vauxhall to ensure it discharges its responsibility to conduct investigations into the cause of any vehicle safety defects, as set out in the Code of Practice on Vehicle Safety Defects.

  • Stewart Malcolm McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Stewart Malcolm McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stewart Malcolm McDonald on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assurances he has received from Vauxhall that all owners of Zafira B models were informed about the changes to the vehicle safety recall relating to those cars.

    Andrew Jones

    To address the latest reported fires, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency told Vauxhall that a secondary safety recall (R/2016/104) was needed on Vauxhall Zafira B models equipped with manual control heating and ventilation systems. Under the requirements of the Code of Practice on vehicle safety defects and the General Product Safety Regulations, manufacturers are required to inform owners/keepers of vehicles that are affected by a vehicle safety recall of the risk and what action they are conducting to address the issue.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the average time was for processing driving licence renewal applications for people over 70 years old in the latest period for which figures are available.

    Andrew Jones

    In 2015/16, the average time taken to process straightforward applications to renew a driving licence from customers aged 70 and over was three days. Applications that require medical investigations can take longer to process if there is a need to seek further information.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps (a) his Department and (b) the DVLA is taking to increase the number of seizures of uninsured vehicles.

    Andrew Jones

    Since 2011 the Government has had in place an insurance and compliance strategy, namely the Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE) scheme operated by DVLA and the Motor Insurers Bureau, which aims to reduce the level of uninsured driving.

    It is estimated that CIE has already helped reduce levels of uninsured driving from 1.4 million in 2010 to 1 million vehicles now.

    The police have powers under Section 165A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 to seize a vehicle that is being used on a public road without motor insurance. How police enforce the law is an operational matter for their discretion.

    The table below shows the number of vehicles seized by the police for driving without insurance.

    Year

    2009

    2010

    2011

    2012

    2013

    2014

    2015

    vehicles seized

    180,000

    150,000

    140,000

    137,000

    135,000

    116,000

    121,000

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had about funding the construction of a new rail station at Horden.

    Andrew Jones

    Officials from Rail North met with Durham County Council on 21 April to discuss its aspirations for a new station at Horden and potential funding sources, including the New Stations Fund. The new station may also be included in the draft Rail North Single Investment Plan.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the average waiting time for an assessment by the DVLA Drivers Medical Group was for (a) all drivers and (b) drivers requiring re-assessment on a regular basis on medical grounds in the most recent period for which figures are available.

    Andrew Jones

    The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) deals with more than 600,000 medical driver licensing applications annually. The length of time taken to deal with an individual application depends on the medical condition and whether further information is required from medical professionals.

    For the period April 2015 to March 2016, the average time for an assessment and a licensing decision to be made was 53 working days. Between April 2014 and March 2015, the figure was 58 working days.