Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the (1) development, and (2) construction, cost of the Northern Powerhouse Rail project; and what is the expected year of completion of that project.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Government will provide up to £45 billion of funding to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail turn-up-and-go railway services between Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield and York.
This £45 billion does not constitute a formal cost estimate for the programme but is a funding cap that both demonstrates our commitment and ambition, whilst ensuring NPR remains an affordable and efficient programme. Three phases of delivery will see major construction work in the 2030s, continuing through to the 2040s.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government to what extent, if at all, HS2 Ltd will be involved in any part of the Northern Powerhouse Rail project.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
No decisions have been taken on the long-term delivery strategy for the programme at this stage. However, HS2 Ltd continue to be involved in the development work covered by the High Speed Rail (Crewe to Manchester) Bill.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many fuel recovery claims are made each year by operators of petrol stations in England, where a motorist has not paid for fuel.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Neither the Department for Transport nor the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency hold information about how many fuel recovery claims are made each year by operators of petrol stations in England, where a motorist has not paid for fuel.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the comparative capital costs of including discontinuous and full electrification on East West Rail.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
In its autumn announcement, EWR Co set out proposals for the discontinuous (partial) electrification of the line. Discontinuous electrification can enable net zero services through the use of hybrid battery-electric trains for reduced upfront capital costs compared to full route electrification. Exact costs will depend on the location and extent of electrification, and updated proposals will be provided at the next consultation on EWR later this year.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill on 22 September (HL10279), when the data collection stage of the pavement parking research will (1) begin, and (2) conclude.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The data collection stage of the pavement parking research is currently being specified as part of the preparatory work that is already underway and is being designed alongside policy development. We are considering when to launch the fieldwork aspect of the research, in tandem with responding to the consultation on pavement parking.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the status of the proposed public service obligation grant for a Newquay to London air service, which companies have submitted bids, and when they expect a decision to award.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Cornwall Council are running a tender exercise for an operator for the Public Service Obligation air service between Newquay and London to commence on 1st November 2025. The Department has no role in the assessment of bids received, nor on timescales for making the decision to award the contract.
When a decision has been made by Cornwall Council, it will submit a funding request to the Department which will then assess its value for money before deciding whether to provide funding for the air service.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reported £243 million underspend by Network Rail as reported by the Office of Rail and Road, and what plans they have to allow Network Rail to spend some of this underspend in investment in new or upgraded rail infrastructure.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) reported in its Annual Efficiency and Finance report that Network Rail financially underperformed by £243 million during 2024/25. This represented an increase in costs driven largely by inflationary pressure, higher maintenance and poor train performance. There are arrangements in place to allow Network Rail to manage overspends and underspends across its five-year funding periods. Network Rail is working to improve its financial performance in the current financial year.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will list the allocation of responsibilities of Ministers in the Department for Transport.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The responsibilities of Ministers in the Department for Transport can be found below:
The Secretary of State has overall responsibility for all Department for Transport business, including:
The Minister for Rail is responsible for:
The Minister for Roads and Buses is responsible for:
The Minister for Local Transport is responsible for:
The Minister for Aviation, Maritime and Decarbonisation is responsible for:
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the scope and timescale for their recently announced research on pavement parking.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Department has been considering all the views expressed in response to the 2020 pavement parking consultation and is currently working through the policy options and the appropriate means of delivering them.
In accordance with Government procurement requirements, my officials are in discussion with suppliers to determine the terms of reference for the current work and expect to issue the formal specification shortly. Timelines will be finalised during the procurement process. Findings will be published as early as possible and no later than 12 weeks after the final outputs from the data collection stage are agreed in accordance with the Government Social Research Publication Protocol. The research will seek to measure the extent of pavement parking and its impacts and provide a baseline so that whichever policy we implement can be evaluated. It will not delay any policy announcement nor the publication of my Department’s formal response to the previous Government’s 2020 consultation.