The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ronnie Cowan on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the administrative costs of delivering means-tested benefits were in each of the last three years.
Justin Tomlinson
The information is not available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Smith on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of the cost resulting from the reduction in the work allowance of universal credit relates to (a) new claimants to universal credit, (b) current recipients of universal credit and (c) current tax credit recipients naturally migrated onto universal credit.
Priti Patel
This information is not available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answers of 28 January 2016 to Questions 24029 and 24048, what (a) financial assessment, (b) cost-benefit assessment and (c) impact assessment his Department has carried out on the proposal to cap the cost of local housing allowance for people living in sheltered and supported housing.
Justin Tomlinson
The policy is still under development and full impact and equality assessments will be undertaken in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Smith on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what his Department’s legal costs were in the case Susan Rutherford, Paul Rutherford and Warren Todd and Appellant A v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
Justin Tomlinson
The Government has incurred approximately £50,626 in legal costs in the Court of Appeal proceedings in the case of Rutherford and others v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and A v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2016] EWCA CIV 29.
It should be noted that this figure includes VAT where this is payable (e.g. on Counsel’s fees) but does not include costs attributable to the time spent by Government advisory lawyers on this case, as time spent by such advisory lawyers is not recorded in a manner that allows it to be attributed to individual cases.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Drew Hendry on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, in what way his Department participates in the European New Car Assessment Programme; and what his policy is on changes to the criteria for awarding five stars for safety.
Andrew Jones
The Department for Transport, as a founding member of Euro NCAP, continues to take a keen interest in the organisation through membership of the Board of Directors.
Euro NCAP has regularly updated the assessment criteria to reflect new technologies and improved designs. As such it has been fundamental to improving road safety of new cars in the UK and the organisation provides a valuable source of information to UK consumers which the government fully supports.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2016 to Question 23012, which options the Government is discussing with the Mayor; and what information his Department holds on the potential effect of other ways of influencing the private hire vehicle market that do not require new legislation.
Andrew Jones
On 20 January 2016 the Mayor of London announced his plans for modernising and enhancing London’s private hire vehicle industry. In these plans the Mayor recognised the need to investigate ways to address the congestion and air quality impacts of the increasing number of private hire vehicles in London without capping numbers. The Government will discuss with the Mayor any options that are proposed.
The Government supports competition and growth in the taxi and private hire sector although we are aware of a range of factors that could affect the private hire market in London, including raising standards and removing exemptions from the Congestion Charge. The Department’s Best Practice Guidance for taxi and private hire vehicle licensing advises licensing authorities that licensing requirements which are unduly stringent will tend unreasonably to restrict the supply of taxi and private hire vehicle services.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many passengers submitted Delay/Repay claims to Southern Railway in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13, (d) 2013-14 and (e) 2014-15.
Claire Perry
The Department does not hold the information requested. However, we will continue to push operators to ensure passengers are aware of compensation arrangements and claim where entitled to do so under the Delay/Repay scheme as set out on the Southern’s website: https://www.southernrailway.com/your-journey/customer-services/delay-repay/delay-repay-form.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to make it easier for passengers to access the cheapest tickets available for any requested journey.
Claire Perry
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Coventry South (Jim Cunningham) on 29 January 2016 UIN 24320, http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-questions-answers/?page=1&max=20&questiontype=AllQuestions&house=commons%2clords&uin=24320.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure train companies have simple and easily comprehensible ticketing policies and offer the cheapest ticket for any requested journey.
Claire Perry
Rail passengers are protected by the National Rail Conditions of Carriage and also the terms of the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement (TSA), an inter-operator agreement that governs, among other things, the retail of rail tickets. These provisions safeguard passengers’ interests by requiring train operators to provide clear information and to sell the most suitable ticket for their journey. This will, in many cases, be the cheapest ticket. Operators are required, under the terms of the TSA, to ask sufficient suitable questions in order to ascertain and sell the best ticket for each passenger’s needs.
In a response to my challenge in December 2014, the rail industry worked with the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to develop a Code of Practice on Retail Information, published in March 2015. The ORR wrote to all train operators in May 2015 to establish levels of compliance with the Code and published an update on progress in September 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Drew Hendry on 2016-02-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which particular measures his Department has included in its Road Safety Statement of 21 December 2015 to help reduce the number of cyclists killed and injured every year.
Andrew Jones
The government has a manifesto commitment to reduce the number of cyclists and other road users killed or injured on our roads every year and we published our British Road Safety Statement, setting out our priorities in achieving that goal on 21 December 2015.
The Statement describes a series of actions to be undertaken across government over the short, medium and long term. Several of these contribute specifically to cyclist safety, including: