The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received on the extension of the plug-in grant to motorcycles; and if he will make a statement.
Andrew Jones
The Department for Transport has received representations from the Motorcycle Industry Association on a consumer incentive for zero emission motorcycles, as well as correspondence form the public at official level.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-02-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the number of operational public weighbridges was by region in each of the last 10 years.
Joseph Johnson
This information is not held centrally by the Department but each Local Weights and Measures Authority will have current information as they are responsible under Section 18 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 for the issuing of certificates to public weighbridge operators. Information on the current location of individual public weighbridges can be found on Local Authorities’ websites from the following link https://www.gov.uk/find-weighbridge.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will estimate how many (a) people and (b) organisations will be affected by the interim guidance on the new anti-lobbying clause in government grant agreements.
Matthew Hancock
The information requested is not held centrally. We are currently working on improving the data collected on grants through the development of an internal Government Grants Information System. The clause will apply to all grants except in exceptional circumstances as set out at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-grants-register.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-02-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to reduce crimes against wildlife in the UK.
Karen Bradley
We fully understand the importance of tackling wildlife crime. This is reflected in the fact that, along with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Home Office provides specific funding to support the work of the National Wildlife Crime Unit.
The funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit is in addition to the funding central Government provides to the police in England and Wales to tackle all types of crime, including wildlife crime. Additionally, Border Force leads the operational response in respect of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-03-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March 2016 to Question 27620, in what ways the ring-fenced £100 million is being spent; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure its other projects compliment local air quality plans.
Andrew Jones
Highways England has set out their approach for managing the Air Quality fund in their Delivery Plan (2015-2020), published in March 2015. In this they committed to building a clear picture of where pollution exists around the Strategic Road Network and to deliver ten pilot schemes to help develop new approaches to reduce air pollution. The ring-fenced air quality fund will support the implementation of viable solutions once these have been identified though Highways England’s ongoing work.
Since 2011, Government has committed over £2 billion to measures that will help improve air quality including uptake of ultra-low emission vehicles and investment in sustainable transport. The team responsible for delivering the air quality plan will work with officials in the Department for Transport to ensure that programmes are closely aligned.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-03-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what reports he has had from Highways England on the recent closure of the M5 between Junction 5 and Junction 4A northbound due to a gantry removal; and if he will publish each of those reports on that closure.
Andrew Jones
Highways England is continuing to investigate this incident and the way in which its impact on the road network was managed by the organisation and its contractors. The Secretary of State has been briefed and a review of the incident is being held with local authorities and the emergency services.
Findings and recommendations are currently being prepared by Highways England and these will be shared with the Secretary of State and subsequently published on its website.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-03-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the money allocated to northern road infrastructure in Budget 2016, is in addition to £800 million allocated to the North West Road Infrastructure Programme.
Andrew Jones
At the budget £161m was announced for the acceleration of smart motorway upgrades to the M62 between junctions 10-12 and 20-25. A further £75m from the Transport Development Fund was committed to developing the recommendations of the government’s strategic studies on Northern Trans-Pennine routes, Manchester’s North West Quadrant and the Trans-Pennine Tunnel. Both of these commitments are in addition to the £1.5bn being spent in the North West between 2015 and 2021 to deliver schemes committed under the first Road Investment Strategy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how his Department plans to monitor and assess the effect of the revised anti-lobbying clause beyond 1 May 2016.
Mr Robert Goodwill
In line with guidance provided by the Cabinet Office, the Department will monitor compliance with this clause in the same way as other contractual terms and conditions, and will consider enforcement action where necessary.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what sanctions are in place to prevent the practice of nationality-based pay discrimination against EEA seafarers employed on (a) UK and (b) non-UK registered vessels working from UK ports.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Equality Act 2010 (Work on Ships and Hovercraft) Regulations 2011 makes clear that it is an offence to offer to pay or pay a person who is a national of an EEA State, or of a designated State (as defined in the Regulations), at a different rate based on that person’s nationality, where the seafarer is working wholly or partly in Great Britain and its adjacent waters and is working on a UK or EEA registered vessel.
Similar legislation is applied in Northern Ireland.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the annual cost is of running the driving theory test under his Department’s contract with Pearson Driving Assessments Ltd; and what estimate he has made of the annual cost of running that test under the contract with Learn Direct from September 2016.
Andrew Jones
The annual cost of running the Driving Theory Test under the contract with Pearson Professional Assessments Ltd (formerly Pearson Driving Assessments Ltd) in 2015/16 was £31.2 million. This cost was as a result of new contract arrangements, where net costs per test fell from September 2014 and again from September 2015. This resulted in a reduction in fees paid by car candidates from £31 to £25 in October 2014 and to £23 in October 2015.
The estimated cost of running the Driving Theory Test from September 2016 with learndirect was dependent on the future volume of tests and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency estimates that the annual cost with learndirect would have been between £38 million and £42 million.