Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they are having to ensure that HS2 Ltd and any of its sub-contractors meet their commitment to engage fully with the public.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
The HS2 Community Engagement Strategy, published in 2017, explains how HS2 Ltd and its contractors will engage with communities and sets out its community commitments on public engagement. HS2 Ltd reports publicly on how well they are performing against these commitments. Five reports have been published to date and all are available on the HS2 website.
The Department for Transport regularly monitors how HS2 Ltd is performing against its community engagement commitments. In his most recent six-monthly report to Parliament on 23 March 2021, the HS2 Minister provided an account of the activities that HS2 Ltd and the Department are deploying to strengthen its community handling approach. The Department continues to review this area to ensure that HS2 Ltd delivers on its commitments and is prepared to take further action as necessary.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their latest estimate of the improvement in UK productivity that will result from building the HS2 railway.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
The Department for Transport published the Phase 1 HS2 business case in April 2020. Paragraph 2.85 and Figure 2.2 of this document set out the breakdown of the total GDP impacts (£82bn at 2015 prices) of the HS2 programme. Whilst total productivity impact has not been formally estimated, the constituent parts of the GDP benefits provide estimated impacts which are important sources of productivity gains.
The £60bn of business user benefits could be translated as direct gains from productivity improvements to business users. Similarly, the impacts from agglomeration (£14bn) due to HS2 captures the impact from improved productivity through urbanisation, and some labour supply impacts (£2bn) through positive labour market dynamics.
HS2 is expected to be transformational, and the wider impacts are likely to be much more significant than currently estimated in the business case. Some of these impacts have been explained in the Strategic Case, regarding skills and employment impacts, innovation and technological changes etc. However, the wider economic impact has not been fully quantified in the economic case.
This lack quantification of important and significant wider benefits was reflected in Conclusion 49 of the Oakervee Review. Also, given that the significance of investments entailing HS2, it will likely have macro-economic impacts on labour and other markets, that may drive up productivity gains. Combining the change to economic geography, dynamic agglomeration and improving access to higher productivity jobs, with the wider macro-economic impacts of the scheme, the productivity impact is likely to be significant.
The Department is working with its arm’s length bodies to develop the evidence on transformational impacts and will aim to incorporate some such evidence, when assured, in future business cases.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their latest estimate of the cost of building each stage of the HS2 railway.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
As set out in the latest 6-monthly Parliamentary report published in March 2021, the total estimated cost ranges for each Phase is as follows:
Phase One: £35bn - £45bn
Phase 2a: £5bn – £7bn
Phase 2b: £32bn – £46bn*
The numbers include contingency to accommodate unforeseeable cost pressures which may emerge during construction, as is to be expected with all major infrastructure projects.
*Validation of the Phase 2b cost range is ongoing and will be updated to support the bringing forward of separate legislation for the HS2 route into Manchester, in line with the conclusions of the Oakervee Review. The range provided excludes scope intended to be funded by other sources such as Northern Powerhouse Rail.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will require HS2 to publish (1) the number of trees they have removed, (2) the number of trees they have planted, and (3) the areas where these changes have been made.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
(1) HS2 Ltd does not specifically record or count individual trees removed or required for clearance, as recording is undertaken on an area basis (measured by hectare).
(2) As part of Phase One alone, HS2 Ltd will plant up to seven million trees and shrubs. Over 700,000 of those trees have already been planted. The area of new woodland will be well in excess of that which is lost. HS2 is creating more than 3300 hectares (33 square kilometres) of new woodland, wildlife and river habitats alongside the line from the West Midlands to London.
(3) Woodland areas to be lost as a result of HS2’s construction, and also those sites to be used for woodland creation, are described in the relevant Environmental Statement, published alongside the relevant legislation for each phase of the project.
Further updates on HS2 Ltd’s environmental performance, including with respect to the loss of ancient woodland and associated compensation response, will be published in the autumn.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to charter aircraft for tourists wishing to visit (1) St Helena, (2) Ascension, (3) Falkland Islands, and (4) any other 'green list' territories which have no current regular air services, in order to boost the tourism sector in those territories.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
The Government has no plans to charter additional aircraft for tourists wishing to visit St Helena, Ascension, the Falklands Islands or any other current 'green list' territories.
The destinations which airlines fly to is a commercial decision for the airline.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk of (1) damage, or (2) pollution, to (a) the Mid Chilterns aquifer, (b) the River Misbourne, and (c) Shardeloes Lake, caused by HS2's work in the area.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
HS2 Ltd’s construction activities in the area have been the subject of comprehensive and detailed risk assessments. This reflects HS2 Ltd’s commitment to Parliament to protect the water environment. The risk assessments have been produced with oversight and advice of technical experts from the Environment Agency and Affinity Water. HS2 Ltd will not commence construction within the aquifer until the Environment Agency and Affinity Water are satisfied that required mitigation measures are in place for any identified potential risks.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to remove Mauritius from the 'red list' of countries from which entry to the UK is banned; and if they have no such plans, when they expect to review that country's position on the list.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
The decision to place Mauritius on the red list on 9 January was in direct response to scientific and medical data, which represents an increased risk to UK public health and an increased risk of community transmission of COVID-19 variants of concern identified in other countries. These are intended to be temporary measures and the Government keeps data for countries and territories under constant review.
The Government has made it consistently clear that it will take decisive action to contain the virus, including adding further countries to the red list, or keeping countries on the red list, if the public health risk of people returning from a particular country without self-isolating becomes too high.
Asked by: Lord Jones of Cheltenham (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures they are planning, if any, to ensure that aviation is safe if and when the UK leaves the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
UK aviation has an excellent safety record and reputation and safety will continue to be a priority at the end of the transition period.
It is paramount that the safety and security of all passengers travelling in the UK and EU is not compromised under any circumstances and to make sure there is continuity and stability for passengers and industry.
The Prime Minister has been clear that our future relationship with the EU must not entail any application of EU law in the UK or CJEU jurisdiction. Continued UK participation in the EASA system would have been inconsistent with this approach.
The EU’s negotiating mandate does not allow for UK participation in EASA but does set out their ambition to agree cooperative aviation safety arrangements with the UK.
To this end, we want an aviation safety agreement with the EU that minimises regulatory burdens for the industry. Such an agreement will facilitate the recognition of aviation safety standards, maintain high safety outcomes and enable continued regulatory cooperation between the UK and EU.
The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority currently oversees most aspects of civil aviation safety in the UK. After the transition period the CAA will take on some additional functions from EASA and will continue to ensure that the UK has world-leading safety standards. The Department for Transport is closely monitoring the CAA’s progress to assume its new responsibilities and receives regular updates to ensure preparations are on track.
The CAA has been preparing for the possibility of leaving the EASA system since the EU referendum in 2016, including recruiting new staff across the organisation.
Outside of the EASA system, the UK will have the autonomy to regulate in a proportionate manner that effectively meets the needs of industry.