Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment she has made of trends in the number of HGV drivers in the UK; and what steps she is taking to address any shortages of those drivers.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
The Office for National Statistics Annual Population Survey estimates that the number of HGV drivers in the twelve-month period ending March 2022 was 262,700, this is up from 253,200 in the twelve-month period ending December 2021. ONS have identified and are investigating an issue in the classification of some occupations in its statistics. While investigations are still ongoing, it is not anticipated that figures of HGV/LGV drivers will be significantly impacted.
In response the Government has taken decisive action to address the HGV driver shortage putting in place 33 short, medium and long-term interventions to date to help alleviate the existing HGV driver shortages. These interventions include investing up to £34 million to create skills bootcamps to train up to 11,000 more people to become HGV drivers. We are also supporting HGV driver training through apprenticeships, including the Large Goods Vehicle Driver and Urban Driver apprenticeships. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and Jobcentre Plus are also supporting returning to driving and helping jobseekers become HGV drivers where appropriate.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has expanded HGV driver testing capacity and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency has improved licencing processes in order to help get these new drivers on the road.
The Government continues to have positive engagement with the sector who report that the 33 measures are working.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is providing support to canal restoration projects that have been affected by the construction of HS2.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
HS2 Ltd works closely with the Canal and River Trust, and local canal groups, to mitigate impacts on the canal network and identify opportunities for improvements. Various canal projects have been supported by HS2 project funds and grants, as well as from donations provided by the HS2 supply chain. Projects have ranged from the supply of wood chippings to improve towpath surfacing, to larger schemes, such as the Trent Sow Parklands and Cannock Chase project which is supporting canal restoration works and improvements to the towpath network. HS2 Ltd is always keen to hear from those involved in local projects, including those aimed at improving community opportunities associated with the canal network.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects track designers to start developing the route for the new HS2 line between Birmingham and East Midlands Parkway.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
Following a pause to design work on the HS2 Eastern Leg as a result of the Oakervee Review and during the development of the Integrated Rail Plan, the Department and HS2 Ltd are now considering how best to take HS2 East forward, working closely with Network Rail.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress he has made on identifying projects suitable for the restoring your railways funding; and what his planned timetable is for providing an update on the submission made by the Campaign to reopen the Ivanhoe Line.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The £500m Restoring Your Railway Fund is supporting over 45 schemes at different stages of development with funding and advice. A Strategic Outline Business Case for the Ivanhoe Line bid was submitted to the Department in May 2021. The Secretary of State for Transport and I are considering next steps for projects, including the Ivanhoe Line, with a decision on the next tranche to progress anticipated later this year.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department will offer support to local authorities replacing conventional diesel with HVO fuel to run their vehicle fleet.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) certificate trading scheme is successfully supporting a market for low carbon fuels in the UK, including biodiesel. Hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) is a type of biodiesel. Those supplying HVO for use in road vehicles in the UK, and which meets sustainability criteria, are eligible for reward under the RTFO scheme.
There is no funding programme specifically for local authorities switching to fuel their existing fleets with HVO, and there are no current plans to introduce such a programme. The primary support for the wider deployment of HVO is the RTFO scheme, which provides a competitive market for a broad range of low carbon fuels.
Local authorities are well placed to determine how best to decarbonise their vehicle fleets. The Department is supporting this through a grant provided by the Energy Savings Trust. This provides tailored outreach advice to local authorities in support of the development and implementation of their own transport decarbonisation strategies, including advice on the decarbonisation of their own vehicle fleets. Later this year the Department will also publish a transport decarbonisation toolkit for local authorities, which will provide guidance to support local areas to deliver more sustainable transport measures including decarbonising their own fleets.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to extend the use of roadside funnel bins following the trial in 2017.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Following National Highways’ trial of roadside funnel bins in 2017 at Lymm Truckstop, a further 44 bins have been installed including at Sandbach and Maidstone Service Areas. National Highways continue to work with Motorway Service Area (MSA) operators to encourage them to install bins and trial different interventions to influence drivers to dispose of their rubbish responsibly.
More broadly, National Highways has commissioned charity Keep Britain Tidy to carry out research into littering behaviour on the Strategic Road Network (SRN). The behavioural insights and outputs from this research will be used by National Highways to implement targeted campaigns including social media campaigns, improvements to rest areas, installation of more drive-up bins, distribution of ‘pinned bins’, and engagement with families and employees.