Tag: Lord German

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2015-11-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the implications for British tourists of the recent state of emergency declared by the President of the Maldives.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Following the declaration of a State of Emergency, the Maldives government made clear that there would be no restrictions on tourist movements and that tourist resorts were unlikely to be significantly affected. Our travel advice was updated to reflect this and advised British nationals visiting the Maldives to take extra care and follow local advice. On 10 November the Maldivian government lifted the State of Emergency. Our travel advice has been updated accordingly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2015-11-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current political situation in the Maldives.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

As the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), said in his press statement on 4 November, the British Government is deeply concerned by recent developments in the Maldives. We believe the State of Emergency declared on 4 November impinged on the basic human rights of the Maldivian people and further undermined confidence in the country’s democracy.

On 10 November the Maldivian government lifted the State of Emergency. As Mr Swire said in his tweet on 10 November, we welcome the lifting of the State of Emergency and look forward to further positive progress in the Maldives.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2015-11-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the suitability of the current range of vocational qualifications offered to those serving prison sentences in England and Wales.

Lord Faulks

The Secretary of State for Justice announced on 8^th September a review of the quality of education in prisons, chaired by Dame Sally Coates. The review will examine the scope, quality and effectiveness of current provision. It will consider the scope and range of the current curricula and identify the most effective teaching and delivery models. Stakeholders are being consulted and a Call for Evidence has been issued. The review is expected to report in the spring of 2016. A copy of the terms of reference can be found at gov.uk

The Welsh Government provides prison education funding to NOMS in Wales to commission services and these are aligned to the Welsh Government’s learning and skills outcome requirements. Vocational courses represent more than 80% of the prisoner education in prisons in Wales and take account of offender needs and labour market information to increase prisoners’ employment opportunities on release.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2016-03-14.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 14 March, whether they intend to continue tolling the Severn Bridges at the prevailing rate at the end of the concession until they have collected an additional £63 million above and beyond operational costs of managing the Bridges.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Chancellor announced in his Budget speech that tolls at the Severn Bridges will be cut by 50% at the end of the current concession. Tolls will continue at this lower level to collect the costs of £63m incurred outside of the concession.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2016-03-14.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 14 March, how the £63 million which will be still outstanding when the Severn Bridges return to public ownership at the end of the concession is broken down.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Most of the cost estimated to have been incurred outside of the concession relate to expenditure between 1992 and 2014, on capital (17%), operations including maintenance (50%) and administration (15%). The remainder was incurred before 1992 or is forecast to be spent between 2015 and 2018. More than half of the operations and maintenance expenditure was to investigate and correct cable corrosion.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2016-03-14.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 14 March, how long they estimate tolling on the Severn Bridges will have to continue in order to collect the additional £63 million beyond the date of the end of the concession on these bridges.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

This depends on traffic levels and on maintenance costs, both of which may change over time. However our current estimates suggest the £63m could take around 18 months to recoup at the toll levels announced in the recent Budget.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2015-09-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the last major maintenance work was undertaken on the first and second Severn crossings, and what was the cost of that work.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

In September 2013 Severn River Crossing Plc (SRC) carried out major refurbishment of the movement joint and structural connection between the Wye Bridge and the Beachley Viaduct on the M48 Crossing. The estimated cost to SRC of this work is £0.75m.

Since 2006, SRC has been repainting the steel truss of the cable stayed bridge on the M4 Second Severn Crossing. This work is programmed to be completed before the end of the concession and to date the estimated cost to SRC is £5.1m

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2015-09-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the annual cost of maintaining the first and second Severn crossings in each of the last 10 years.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Severn River Crossing Plc (SRC) is required to maintain and repair both Severn Crossings. This includes performing regular maintenance and inspections work and carrying out any necessary repairs.

Separate maintenance costs are not available. The figures below for both crossings show all of SRC’s operational expenditure including maintenance on both crossings.

Year	Operational expenditure (including maintenance) £m
2005	8.75
2006	9.90
2007	10.62
2008	10.65
2009	10.71
2010	10.70
2011	13.03
2012	13.05
2013	14.37
2014	13.16