Tag: Richard Burden

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-05-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what projection he has made of the cost savings from the proposed closure of the Marine Office in Norwich in 2019.

Mr Robert Goodwill

There are no projected savings from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s (MCA) proposals to close Norwich Marine Office because the plan put forward proposes to invest in a Marine Office nearer London.

Just closing the office would realise savings of £66K per annum. The only value to the MCA is the value of the lease. The value of land and building assets reside with the landlord.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the suitability of the UK’s existing (a) road infrastructure and (b) skills in the workforce for the anticipated rise in the number of autonomous vehicles.

Andrew Jones

Autonomous vehicles could potentially have significant impacts on congestion, safety, and efficiency. The Government recognises that this is an important issue and needs to be better understood to properly inform long-term policy and investment decisions. For this reason, the Department for Transport is currently engaging with interested parties and conducting research and development to understand the specific requirements on the road infrastructure needed for the deployment of these technologies.

The Transport Systems Catapult is developing a report on current and future skills for the fast-growing Intelligent Mobility sector, which includes autonomous vehicles. This report will be complete in early summer.

This work is ongoing, and forms part of a much wider programme of research and development that the Government is supporting to examine the issues associated with these technologies.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-06-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether UK ground personnel based in Saudi Arabia have witnessed the (a) movement, (b) transport or (c) storage of cluster munitions in that country.

Michael Fallon

No.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-07-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 11 July 2016 to Question 41943, how many people have (a) claimed and (b) received payment under the vaccine damages payment scheme in respect of a vaccine used for whooping cough.

Justin Tomlinson

I refer the honourable gentleman to my response to his question dated 31 May 2016. Information regarding claims and awards in respect of a particular disease or vaccine is unavailable.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-07-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with his European counterparts on promoting (a) a sulphur limit and (b) decarbonisation measures through the International Maritime Organisation.

Mr John Hayes

Department for Transport officials continue to work with their European and international counterparts on both matters.

Ships operating in an emission control area (ECA) – such as the North Sea (including the English Channel) and Baltic Sea – are already subject to a 0.1 per cent sulphur limit. The next sulphur limit to affect shipping will be the 0.5 per cent global cap for ships when operating outside an ECA. The limit will apply in 2020, subject to the outcome of IMO’s review of fuel availability, which could see its application deferred until 2025. The review’s findings will be considered at the next session of the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), which takes place in October 2016.

Regarding measures to reduce carbon emissions from ships, we expect a global data collection system on fuel consumption from ships to be adopted at the upcoming MEPC meeting. This is the first step in a process considering further technical and operational measures to enhance the energy efficiency of shipping. Officials will also play an active role in the Working Group at the same meeting to discuss how international shipping can play its part in delivering the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has for replacing or renewing the National Stroke Strategy when it expires in 2017.

David Mowat

The National Stroke Strategy remains valid and implementation of it continues. There are, therefore, no current plans to renew the national stroke strategy. Action is being taken to ensure the progress made on stroke continues. This includes;

– publication of the Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Outcomes Strategy in 2013, which includes many stroke specific strategic ambitions;

– a CVD expert forum, hosted by NHS England, to coordinate delivery of the work which was initiated in the CVD Outcomes Strategy; and

– NHS England’s National Clinical Director for stroke working with the Strategic Clinical Networks, Urgent and Emergency Care Networks, clinical commissioning groups, Sustainability and Transformation Plans, voluntary agencies and individual providers to support better commissioning and provision of stroke care.

More generally, the NHS Five Year Forward View recognises that quality of care, including stroke care, can be variable and that patients’ needs are changing and new treatment options are emerging. The Five Year Forward View sets out high level objectives to address these issues.

There has been no formal evaluation of the National Stroke Strategy. However there is a continuous evaluation of the quality of stroke care via the Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme (SSNAP). This measures most of the key indicators defined as important in the strategy and findings are available on the SSNAP website:

https://www.strokeaudit.org/

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what processes the Government has in place to check luggage on flights to the UK at (a) departing airports with known security concerns and (b) the destination airport.

Mr John Hayes

Under international treaties administered by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), all contracting states are responsible for the implementation of aviation security regimes in their own airports, to be applied according to a number of standards and recommended practices set out by ICAO.

Baggage belonging to air passengers arriving in the UK is screened for security purposes at the airport of departure and would only be re-screened if the passenger was taking an onward flight from a UK airport.

The standards of aviation security applied to flights inbound to the UK are a priority for the Department for Transport. The Department deploys a network of skilled professionals to engage with host states supporting the improvement of standards in aviation security. This is to ensure the protection of all inbound UK flights, out of those regions by identifying and mitigating security risks, including vulnerabilities at international airports worldwide.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-10-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the proportion of global shipping tonnage that will be registered in the UK in 2020.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Department has not produced estimates of the future size of the UK Ship Register (UKSR). The Government is committed to supporting the UK maritime sector and improving the UKSR. The Maritime Growth Study, published on 7 September 2015, contained a number of recommendations relating to the ship register.

The Government will respond formally to the report by the end of 2015, but is taking immediate action in response to some recommendations. This includes the establishment of a Ministerial Working Group for Maritime Growth and taking steps to support the improved operation of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) such as appointing a commercial director to lead the UKSR separately from the Agency’s regulatory functions and a business case exploring the costs and benefits of options for more significant reform of the MCA.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the minutes of all meetings of the Special Cabinet Economic Affairs (Airports) Sub-Committee; and if he will make it his policy to publish the minutes of future such meetings.

Mr Oliver Letwin

Information relating to the proceedings of Cabinet Committees, including when and how often they meet and which Ministers have attended, is generally not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many vehicles have been reassessed by the DVLA for their historic vehicle status; and how many such vehicles have (a) retained their historic status and (b) had their historic status revoked as a result of the reassessment.

Andrew Jones

The DVLA is carrying out a targeted exercise involving a small number of historic vehicles. So far, 30 of these vehicles have retained their historic vehicle status. No vehicles have yet had their historic vehicle status removed.