The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-02-12.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many multi-agency vehicle enforcement checks were mounted in each of the last five years.
Lord Bates
The Home Office does not hold this information. This is an operational matter for the police and other partner agencies.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-01-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on total passenger capacity of the East Coast Main Line of the use of 280-seat trains on 17 per cent of the long distance train paths into and out of King’s Cross, as compared with the 530-seat trains used by the InterCity East Coast franchise.
Baroness Kramer
Decisions on the allocation of track capacity on the railway are matters for Network Rail and the Office of Rail Regulation. Clearly, where the number of available train paths on a route is constrained, as in the case of parts of the East Coast Main Line, the use of trains with fewer seats than the maximum operationally possible would reduce passenger capacity. However there are other factors influencing the allocation of train paths, including the need for services to cover a range of different routes and stopping patterns, and the availability of rolling stock. The Government would expect such considerations to be taken into account within the decision process.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-01-14.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to expand the role of the British Transport Police in providing supervision around transport interchanges.
Baroness Kramer
The BTP currently polices transport interchanges through hub policing teams. These teams work closely with various partners including the Home Office forces, Network Rail, Transport for London and the train operators to provide a seamless policing model spanning the underground and mainline stations. The aim is to provide a coordinated and focused policing service to keep the general public safe and reduce crime and disorder. There are no plans to expand the role of the British Transport Police (BTP) in providing supervision around transport interchanges.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-01-14.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect that the review of level crossing legislation will result in a legislative proposal being put before Parliament.
Baroness Kramer
We want to bring forward legislation as soon as possible.
However, whilst we have accepted the majority of the recommendations made by the Law Commission, our response to its report noted that there were a number of areas where we believed that further consideration with stakeholders, including the Scottish and Welsh Governments, was necessary before reaching a conclusion.
The Department for Transport has produced a Level Crossing Reform Action Plan which explains how this work will be taken forward including an indicative timetable for bringing forward legislative proposals during 2016. Initial discussions with stakeholders are already underway.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-01-14.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the infrastructure of the East Coast Main Line has sufficient capacity to enable the Virgin/Stagecoach consortium to deliver both faster and more frequent trains under the InterCity East Coast franchise.
Baroness Kramer
The enhanced infrastructure, provided by Government’s Rail Investment Strategy for Control Period 5 (2014-2019) and as part of the Intercity Express Programme (IEP), and new trains, provided by IEP, will allow Virgin Trains East Coast to deliver improvements to the East Coast train service. In addition to this any decision on the allocation of further capacity made available by these enhancements will be taken by the Office of Rail Regulation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-01-14.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the impact on the taxpayer of the payment of the lower variable track access charge for the 17 per cent of long-distance train paths into and out of King’s Cross allocated to open access operators; and how much additional income would be generated for Network Rail if those operators paid the same level of access charge as franchised operators.
Baroness Kramer
The purpose of the charging regime for Control Period 5 (2014- 2019) is to be as cost reflective as possible, recognising that access charges must be set at a level which the market segment in question can bear. The Office of Rail Regulation as the independent regulator set out their proposals for access charges in their Final Determination following extensive consultation with industry stakeholders. It is not for the Department to determine how Open Access Operators should be charged for access to the network.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2014-04-01.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what actions they will take to facilitate connections between the Cambrian Line and the train services provided from Porthmadog Harbour Station on the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland railways in order to support the tourist industry.
Baroness Kramer
The Cambrian Line is part of the Wales and Borders franchise operated by Arriva Trains Wales. The specification and day-to-day management of the franchise is the responsibility of the Welsh Government.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2014-04-01.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Kramer on 27 March (WA 145), whether the electric stock referred to in her answer will be subject to refurbishment before its transfer to the Northern Rail franchise.
Baroness Kramer
The electric stock referred to in my previous answer will be subject to light refurbishment before transfer to the Northern Rail franchise. This will be specified and managed by Northern and the rolling stock company involved. As the Noble Lord may be aware, the Northern Direct Award is for 22 months – from February 2016 a new franchise competition winner will be running services on this franchise. Therefore the new franchisee will develop their own proposals regarding any further refurbishment or replacement of the electric powered rolling stock.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2014-04-01.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Faulks on 27 March (WA 141), what steps they will take to ensure that legal aid resources are spent in the most equitable way and are not concentrated on fewer high-profile defendants.
Lord Newby
In the vast majority of cases, legal aid fees are based solely on factors such as the type of alleged offence, the length of trial and the amount of paperwork involved. They are not increased just because a defendant is “high-profile”. We plan to reduce these fees in 2015, subject to consideration of a number of reviews currently taking place. In addition, a very small number of the longest cases (Very High Cost Cases) are paid based on the work required and the substance of the case. These cases account for approximately 0.1% of criminal cases, but 7.5% of the legal aid spend. The Government is committed to controlling the cost of these cases, and has recently introduced a 30% cut in fees.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2014-04-01.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they consider that library facilities in prisons, including the availability and ordering of books, are fit for purpose.
Lord Faulks
Prison library services are, in the majority of prisons, provided by Public Library Authorities. Prison libraries enable prisoners to receive, subject to the constraints of operating within a custodial environment, a service equivalent to that provided for library users in the community.
We consider them to be fit for purpose.