Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of current training and vehicle inspection regimes on the introduction of large electric vans.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is aware of the specific needs of large vans when transitioning to zero emissions and is seeking to give further support to the market. The Department for Transport recently consulted on further changes to driving licence and MOT rules to ensure that driver training and vehicle inspection regimes are suitable for the transition to zero emission vehicles. The responses will be published soon. The Department will continue to work with the DVSA to ensure that existing regimes support the transition to ZEVs.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the cost of low-carbon fuels, compared to diesel and kerosene, on their usage by logistics businesses.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Low Carbon Fuel Strategy, which the Department intends to publish later this year, will set out possible scenarios for the deployment of low carbon fuels across transport sectors out to 2050.
The Government supports the production of low carbon fuels through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) and published a cost benefit analysis for the RTFO in 2021, but it has not undertaken a formal assessment of the impact of cost of different fuel types or the level of usage for logistics businesses.
The Department recognises the opportunities for using higher blend renewable fuels, including drop in fuels, in maximising greenhouse gas savings when used in existing vehicles. As set out in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, the Department is exploring potential measures to remove market barriers for use in the logistics sector.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role hydrogen could play in reducing carbon emissions associated with the logistics sector.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Hydrogen has an important potential role to play in decarbonising heavier applications such as HGVs. There are specific use cases where hydrogen can offer advantages over batteries, for example where vehicles need longer ranges and more rapid refuelling (longer distance HGVs) or greater energy density. The Zero Emission Road Freight Demonstrator programme will showcase zero emission HGV technologies, including hydrogen fuel cells, at scale, on UK roads. The programme will build a strong evidence base to enable strategic, long-term, national infrastructure decisions to be made.
The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) supports the supply of renewable hydrogen used in transport by placing obligations on suppliers to ensure a percentage of the fuel supplied in the UK is from renewable sources where it can provide valuable carbon savings. The Government has expanded this support to include not just road vehicles, but also trains and shipping. Fuels supplied under the RTFO scheme deliver a third of domestic transport carbon savings under current carbon budgets.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government when the next stage of the Zero Emission Road Freight (ZERFT) Demonstration programme will commence.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Following last year’s successful competition, due diligence on winning bidders is expected to be completed soon and the final outcome will then be announced.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on carbon emissions from logistics vehicles that would come from greater use of low-carbon drop-in fuels, compared to diesel.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Low Carbon Fuel Strategy, which the Department intends to publish later this year, will set out possible scenarios for the deployment of low carbon fuels across transport sectors out to 2050.
The Government supports the production of low carbon fuels through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) and published a cost benefit analysis for the RTFO in 2021, but it has not undertaken a formal assessment of the impact of cost of different fuel types or the level of usage for logistics businesses.
The Department recognises the opportunities for using higher blend renewable fuels, including drop in fuels, in maximising greenhouse gas savings when used in existing vehicles. As set out in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, the Department is exploring potential measures to remove market barriers for use in the logistics sector.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase the production of low-carbon fuels for all logistics transport modes.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Low Carbon Fuel Strategy, which the Department intends to publish later this year, will set out possible scenarios for the deployment of low carbon fuels across transport sectors out to 2050.
The Government supports the production of low carbon fuels through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) and published a cost benefit analysis for the RTFO in 2021, but it has not undertaken a formal assessment of the impact of cost of different fuel types or the level of usage for logistics businesses.
The Department recognises the opportunities for using higher blend renewable fuels, including drop in fuels, in maximising greenhouse gas savings when used in existing vehicles. As set out in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, the Department is exploring potential measures to remove market barriers for use in the logistics sector.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to publish the low carbon fuels strategy.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Low Carbon Fuel Strategy, which the Department intends to publish later this year, will set out possible scenarios for the deployment of low carbon fuels across transport sectors out to 2050.
The Government supports the production of low carbon fuels through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) and published a cost benefit analysis for the RTFO in 2021, but it has not undertaken a formal assessment of the impact of cost of different fuel types or the level of usage for logistics businesses.
The Department recognises the opportunities for using higher blend renewable fuels, including drop in fuels, in maximising greenhouse gas savings when used in existing vehicles. As set out in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, the Department is exploring potential measures to remove market barriers for use in the logistics sector.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role synthetic fuels could play in reducing carbon emissions associated with the logistics sector.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The forthcoming low carbon fuels strategy will cover all transport modes used by the logistics sector. Synthetic fuels can be expensive and energy-intensive to manufacture. However, they do have potential to help decarbonise transport sectors where there are limited alternatives to liquid or gaseous fuels, such as the heaviest and longest-range vehicles and aircraft.
In recognition of the potential benefits of synthetic fuels produced using renewable power, these fuels are eligible for support under the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) certificate trading scheme.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the forthcoming low carbon fuels strategy will cover all transport modes used by the logistics sector.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The forthcoming low carbon fuels strategy will cover all transport modes used by the logistics sector. Synthetic fuels can be expensive and energy-intensive to manufacture. However, they do have potential to help decarbonise transport sectors where there are limited alternatives to liquid or gaseous fuels, such as the heaviest and longest-range vehicles and aircraft.
In recognition of the potential benefits of synthetic fuels produced using renewable power, these fuels are eligible for support under the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) certificate trading scheme.
Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential impact on innovation in the logistics sector of the Pioneer prospectus.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Innovation is vital to the UK freight and logistics sector, and the Government has facilitated and will continue to promote innovation in logistics.
The Government is pursuing association with the Horizon Europe scheme. The Pioneer prospectus is a bold and ambitious alternative. No assessment of its impact on freight and logistics innovation specifically has been undertaken.
The Department for Transport’s (DfT) Science, Innovation and Technology division, with the support of the DfT Chief Scientific Adviser, will continue to work with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology to represent DfT’s innovation priorities.