Tag: Grahame M. Morris

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame M. Morris on 2014-03-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the current level of (a) use and (b) availability is amongst offshore helicopter passengers in the oil and gas industry of emergency breathing systems that meet Category A of the Civil Aviation Authority’s relevant technical specifications.

Robert Goodwill

There are currently no Category ‘A’ emergency breathing systems (EBS) in use by, or available to, passengers on UK offshore helicopter flights. The EBS currently in use in the UK sector of the North Sea does not meet the Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) higher Category ‘A’ specification contained in CAA Publication CAP 1034, primarily because it takes too long to deploy. The EBS used in the Norwegian sector also does not meet the Category ‘A’ requirement, primarily as it cannot be deployed underwater.

EBS that would likely meet Category ‘A’ is commercially available. In particular the passenger short term air supply system (P-STASS) developed for the UK military, which the CAA understands is currently being considered by the industry, has previously been used for civilian operations (e.g. the Marine Incident Response Group).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame M. Morris on 2014-04-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects to publish the Senior Traffic Commissioner’s Statutory Guidance on bus reliability and punctuality.

Stephen Hammond

The Senior Traffic Commissioner’s Statutory Document on Local Bus Services has been published for a further period of consultation on 07 April 2014, for six weeks. The document has been revised following responses received during the first consultation. The Senior Traffic Commissioner is aware that the industry is keen for the final document to be introduced. She will review the responses to the second consultation after it closes on 19 May but at this stage can not confirm the planned date of publication.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame M. Morris on 2014-04-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total (a) number and (b) value was of financial penalties imposed on bus operators by each of the eight regional traffic commissioners from 2010-11 to date.

Stephen Hammond

The information requested is in the table below:

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame M. Morris on 2014-04-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the effect on passenger survivability in the North Sea of side-floating helicopter schemes that (a) comply and (b) do not comply with the relevant Civil Aviation Authority statutory specifications.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), as part of its Offshore Helicopter Review, looked at improvements that could be made to helicopters to increase the survivability of passengers in the event of a ditching in the sea. The CAA has made recommendations to industry concerning the use of flotation devices. However, the CAA does not have statutory specifications for side-floating helicopter schemes.

The requirements for such equipment are being developed by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which commissioned a study that was conducted by Eurocopter and Aerazur.　 Previous research by both the CAA and the US Federal Aviation Administration has shown that the majority of fatalities following a ditching or water impact event were due to drowning following the capsize of the helicopter.　 Future requirements for such equipment, which are intended to mitigate the risk of capsize, will be determined by EASA.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame M. Morris on 2014-04-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the helicopter fleet operating in the offshore oil and gas industry is fitted with a side-floating helicopter scheme that is compliant with the Civil Aviation Authority’s relevant statutory specifications.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), as part of its Offshore Helicopter Review, looked at improvements that could be made to helicopters to increase the survivability of passengers in the event of a ditching in the sea. The CAA has made recommendations to industry concerning the use of flotation devices. However, the CAA does not have statutory specifications for side-floating helicopter schemes.

The requirements for such equipment are being developed by the European Aviation Safety Agency.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame M. Morris on 2014-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of changes to the number of fast delivery reports to magistrates’ courts in England and Wales after the introduction of the Transforming Rehabilitation Agenda.

Jeremy Wright

Pre-Sentence Reports currently fall into three categories; Standard Delivery (SDR), Fast Delivery (FDR), and Same Day (or Oral) reports. This process allows Courts the flexibility to deliver sentencing decisions in the appropriate timeframe, depending on each individual case, reducing the number of adjournments and expediting the criminal justice process.

The Transforming Rehabilitation reforms will introduce a new Risk of Serious Recidivism (RSR) tool which will be used to inform the allocation of cases to new Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) or the National Probation Service (NPS) and complements the pre-sentence report process. Our testing with operational staff in Trusts of the RSR tool indicates that it is straightforward to use, in line with our commitment to minimising bureaucracy for frontline staff.

The new National Probation Service (NPS) will be responsible for advice to courts and, prior to sentence, the NPS will advise courts on sentencing options for cases as part of a pre-sentence report (in accordance with the reserved function of advice to court under section 4 of the Offender Management Act 2007).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame M. Morris on 2014-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what resources he will make available for interviews between a prisoner and a probation officer to allocate the case to the National Probation Service or a Community Rehabilitation Company after a sentence of imprisonment after the introduction of the Transforming Rehabilitation Agenda in England and Wales.

Jeremy Wright

The Transforming Rehabilitation transitional process taking place during April and May 2014 will allow us to refine all new procedures before the creation of CRCs and the NPS on 1 June 2014, and help to ensure the right resources are in place to carry out all associated tasks.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame M. Morris on 2014-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the National Probation Service will be responsible for the provision of court reports after the introduction of the Transforming Rehabilitation Agenda in England and Wales.

Jeremy Wright

Pre-Sentence Reports currently fall into three categories; Standard Delivery (SDR), Fast Delivery (FDR), and Same Day (or Oral) reports. This process allows Courts the flexibility to deliver sentencing decisions in the appropriate timeframe, depending on each individual case, reducing the number of adjournments and expediting the criminal justice process.

The Transforming Rehabilitation reforms will introduce a new Risk of Serious Recidivism (RSR) tool which will be used to inform the allocation of cases to new Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) or the National Probation Service (NPS) and complements the pre-sentence report process. Our testing with operational staff in Trusts of the RSR tool indicates that it is straightforward to use, in line with our commitment to minimising bureaucracy for frontline staff.

The new National Probation Service (NPS) will be responsible for advice to courts and, prior to sentence, the NPS will advise courts on sentencing options for cases as part of a pre-sentence report (in accordance with the reserved function of advice to court under section 4 of the Offender Management Act 2007).