Tag: Richard Burden

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-05-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to assess the potential merits of its proposals on drones to be included in the planned Modern Transport Bill; and what assessment he has made of the need for temporary measures to ensure public safety related to drones until such proposals have been enacted.

Mr Robert Goodwill

There are existing regulations in place that require users of drones to maintain direct, unaided visual contact with their vehicle and to not recklessly or negligently cause or permit an aircraft to endanger any person or property. There are severe penalties in place for misuse of drones, such as up to five years imprisonment for endangering an aircraft.

The Department for Transport (DfT) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) work with a wide range of industry partners across the aviation sector, (including manufacturers, airports, and airlines), to ensure our understanding of potential hazards to aircraft remains up-to-date. Further work is underway to better understand the risk posed by flying drones close to commercial planes to ensure that regulations remain fit for purpose.

Guidance on tackling the risks of criminal drone use has been provided to constabularies across the UK. The Secretary of State has recently written to Police to request their assistance in raising awareness of drone risks and restrictions.

Communication and education of users on current safety restrictions will be key. Officials from my Department are actively considering with the CAA the development of an expanded and diversified communication and education campaign, to include more mediums and supporting products.

The Government is planning to consult on a range of measures on drones over the summer, and will then seek any further appropriate legislative measures through the Modern Transport Bill.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-06-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions (a) he and (b) officials of his Department have had with the European Maritime Safety Agency on implementing sulphur reduction regulations.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Requirements under Directive 2012/33/EU – the sulphur content of marine fuels – came into force in the UK on 16 December 2014. Official level discussions between the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the Department on technical and operational aspects of the sulphur limits take place in the European Sustainable Shipping Forum (ESSF). In addition, DfT and EMSA officials attend a comitology committee which considers legal matters arising from these requirements.

There have been no direct discussions between DfT Ministers and EMSA on the sulphur requirements.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-07-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans the Government has for parliamentary scrutiny of the work of the UK’s representatives on the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance; and if he will list the (a) dates and (b) means by which its decisions have been reported to Parliament during 2016.

Alok Sharma

The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance was established in 1988 as a result of the Stockholm Declaration, which represents a political commitment between signatories, rather than a legal one. Its decisions are not legally binding and have no direct impact on UK legislation, policy or resources. As such there is no formal requirement for parliamentary scrutiny of its
decisions. All its activities and decisions are reported in full on its website.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-09-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many (a) investigations and (b) prosecutions overseen by Trading Standards have related to (i) the mis-selling of vehicles and (ii) the tampering of mileage on vehicles in each of the last five years.

Joseph Johnson

The Department does not hold the information requested. National Trading Standards issues annual reports setting out annual data but it is not broken down into the categories requested.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2016 to Question 46379, how many instances of fraud have been identified by her Department’s Counter Fraud Section in relation to UK aid spending in each of the last three years; and in which areas of her Department’s spending such instances occurred.

Rory Stewart

The counter fraud section of DFID’s Internal Audit Department is responsible for managing all internal and external referrals on crime, corruption and fraud. The majority of reports are raised through our confidential hotline or through our dedicated e-mail account. Both of these access points are clearly referenced on DFID’s external website.

Our case numbers have increased in recent years. We believe this is as a result of the proactive approach we have taken on fraud awareness and counter fraud activities. Our staff and partners are now much clearer on the action to be taken to report concerns as soon as they arise.

In FY13-14 there were 6 cases of proven fraud across 4 of our central departments. There were 51 cases of proven fraud across 18 of our country offices.

In FY14-15 there were 33 cases of proven fraud across 9 of our central departments. There were 39 cases of proven fraud across 17 of our country offices.

In FY15-16 there were 28 cases of proven fraud across 11 of our central departments. There were 60 cases of proven fraud across 20 of our country offices.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the respective roles of (a) Highways England and (b) its proposed programme management partner in the delivery of the Road Investment Strategy Programme.

Andrew Jones

The government is tripling the capital investment in the Strategic Road Network. Highways England have been given responsibility for delivery of the Road Investment Strategy and operation of the network.

A four year term contract was tendered competitively by Highways England to a consortium consisting of CH2M Hill, Mace and PwC (CMP) in early July 2015 to help provide additional support to improve their capability and available resources to deliver an increasingly demanding and complex programme.

This has no impact on the role, responsibilities and requirements of Highways England.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Volkswagen vehicles have been retested for emissions by the Vehicle Certification Agency to date; what the outcome of those retests has been; how many vehicles are still to be retested; and when he expects all retests to be completed.

Andrew Jones

The Government takes the unacceptable actions of Volkswagen (VW) Group extremely seriously. As we investigate what went wrong and what we can do to stop it happening again, the priority of course remains to protect the public. We expect VW to take every step necessary to protect its UK customers, but it is right that the Government carry out their own thorough and independent investigation.

A written statement was made today (10 November) informing the House of the latest developments on the Department for Transport’s vehicle emissions testing programme, following the revelations that VW had fitted defeat devices to some of its vehicles.

The Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) is working to confirm that this issue is not industry wide. They have tested two VW group vehicles known to contain a defeat device and will rerun laboratory tests on popular cars sold in the UK to compare real world driving emissions against laboratory performance. This will include measuring CO₂ .

The Secretary of State spoke to Dr Herbert Deiss of VW on 4 November to discuss CO₂ emissions, seeking information on those vehicles affected in the UK and the extent of the discrepancy. VW have stated that they are working hard to clarify the situation and are liaising with relevant approval authorities.

The Secretary of State has written jointly with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills to VW seeking clarification on several issues. Separately, officials from the Department for Transport, and its Agencies have held a number of discussions with VW regarding the recall of affected vehicles.

The Department for Transport has not made a specific assessment of on road emissions in relation to type approval requirements, but officials are aware of the findings in published reports suggesting significant differences.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure consistent and comprehensive communications by tour companies and airlines with UK nationals in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Department for Transport has been in constant contact with tour companies and airlines operating in Sharm-el-Sheikh. All have been working in collaboration to ensure that information on flights to the UK has been provided to UK nationals on a timely basis, supported by travel advice issued through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, who have also been providing consular assistance on the ground. Since flights restarted on Friday 6 November 2015, over 16,000 passengers have returned to the UK. This includes those that travelled independently, for example on a flight only basis. Flights on 17 November saw the return of all UK nationals that wished to do so.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Israeli government on the eviction of the Ghaith-Sub Laban family from their home in East Jerusalem.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

We are concerned about the imminent threat of eviction to the Ghaith-Sub Laban family and about the forcible displacement of protected persons. An official from our Consulate General in Jerusalem attended the court hearing on 31 May. Our Consul-General to Jerusalem raised this issue with the Mayor of Jerusalem on 28 October. Most recently our Consulate General in Jerusalem expressed our concern publicly on 18 November via Twitter, calling for the eviction to be halted.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-12-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 November 2015 to Question 16092, how many UK nationals remain in Sharm el-Sheikh.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Regular flights to and from the UK to Sharm el Sheikh were suspended on 4 November. Flights to return UK nationals from Sharm el-Sheikh to the UK, supported by special security measures, ended on Tuesday 17 November. Those flights provided sufficient capacity to return all UK nationals who wished to travel home.In total over 16,000 passengers were returned home, and I commend the carriers who helped in facilitating this process. At the point at which flights stopped, we estimated that there were fewer than 200 UK nationals remaining in Sharm el-Sheikh. UK nationals who chose to remain in Sharm el-Sheikh were advised that they would need to make their own arrangements to travel.

We are working closely with the Egyptian authorities on the implementation of sustainable security measures so that flights between the UK and Sharm el-Sheikh can resume as soon as possible.