Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the current average waiting time is for a driving (a) practical and (b) test for motor cars; and if she will set out how this compares to the pre‑covid figures.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The national average waiting time for a car practical driving test in October 2025 was 21.9 weeks.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) supervise the delivery of light vehicle MOTs through approved MOT garages. As these are private garages, the DVSA does not collate overall average waiting time data for MOTs.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions her Department has had with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on the (a) mutual recognition and (b) simplified conversion of pilot licences between the UK Civil Aviation Authority and EASA member states.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Mutual recognition of personnel licensing and simplified conversion of pilot licences would require an expansion to the Aviation Safety Chapter of the TCA (Trade and Cooperation Agreement) which is reviewed annually at the UK-EU Specialised Committee on Aviation Safety. The last meeting took place on 21 November 2024 and no expansion was agreed.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of increasing (a) registration, (b) geofencing and (c) remote identification requirements for (i) drones and (ii) drone components in order to improve (A) traceability and (B) enforcement.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
This Government is delivering the following reforms in the Unmanned Aircraft (Amendment) Regulations 2025.
(a) All drones weighing 100g or more with a camera must be registered from 1st January 2026.
(b) Drones weighing 250g or more must have geo-awareness requirements from 1st January 2026. Then, from 1st January 2028, Geo-awareness requirements will apply to all drones weighing 100g or more with a camera.
(c) Drones weighing 250g or more must have remote identification (RID) requirements from 1st January 2026. Then, from 1st January 2028, RID will apply to drones weighing 100g or more with a camera.
These reforms will improve traceability because they will enforce the registration of a RID “digital numberplate” that can be linked to a registered operator. Geo-awareness and RID will help law enforcement to target the actively non-compliant drones that have switched off RID and are ignoring geo-awareness alerts of airspace restrictions, therefore reducing the volume of incidents and length of investigation for suspicious drone activity.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of road safety measures in protecting (a) horse riders and (b) carriage drivers on public highways.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government is committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads and my Department works with a broad range of stakeholders to help us achieve our aim.
In 2022 The Highway Code was updated to improve the safety of all road users, particularly the most vulnerable. Key changes included the introduction of a Hierarchy of Road Users, which ensures that those who do the greatest harm have the greatest responsibility to reduce the danger or threat that they pose to others, along with the strengthening of guidance on safe passing distances and speeds when overtaking horse-riders.
THINK!, the Government's flagship road safety campaign, plays an important role in raising awareness of, and encouraging compliance with, road safety legislation, including the changes to The Highway Code. THINK!, ran campaigns to alert road users of the changes as they came into effect and broader behaviour campaigns to encourage understanding and uptake of the guidance. Results from the last campaign showed that by September 2023 93% of drivers agreed it was their responsibility to give space to vulnerable road users. We will continue to promote The Highway Code changes on THINK! and DfT social media channels and via our partner organisations.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many road incidents involving horses have been reported in each of the last five years; and how many of those incidents resulted in (a) injury and (b) death to (i) riders, (ii) drivers and (iii) horses.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The number of reported personal injury road collisions involving horses and the numbers of killed or injured casualties in these collisions by road user type are shown in the table:
Year | Collisions involving horses | Killed horse riders | Injured horse riders | Killed drivers or riders (excluding horse riders) | Injured drivers or riders (excluding horse riders) |
2020 | 82 | 1 | 78 | 0 | 4 |
2021 | 78 | 0 | 76 | 0 | 2 |
2022 | 72 | 1 | 70 | 0 | 3 |
2023 | 53 | 0 | 52 | 0 | 5 |
2024 | 63 | 0 | 66 | 0 | 5 |
STATS19 only records horses as vehicles and therefore the number of killed or injured horses cannot be calculated.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate her Department has made of the number of road traffic accidents caused by LED headlights affecting drivers' vision.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department does not hold data relating to the number of collisions caused by LED highlights specifically.
The Department’s published road casualty statistics include figures for the number of collisions where ‘vision affected by dazzling headlights’ was recorded as a contributory factor by a police officer attending the scene. In 2023, the latest year for which this data is available, there were 216 reported injury collisions with this factor assigned.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of reopening the Poulton-le-Fylde to Fleetwood rail line.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Business case development from 2023 found a tram-train solution as the most promising option to connect Fleetwood and Poulton-le-Fylde, but it offered “poor” value for money. No further DfT funding has been prioritised in this Spending Review. It is now for Lancashire County Combined Authority to decide whether to prioritise further work.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many railway stations will receive additional funding to improve CCTV in Fylde constituency.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport recently announced just under £17 million investment to better connect CCTV at train stations, enabling greater real-time access for police to accelerate investigations and help passengers feel safer. We are in the planning phase of the project, with funding not due to be allocated until 2026/27. The project will initially connect the cameras at the stations with the highest footfall, before being expanded to other stations so that 98 per cent of passenger footfall is captured.
Northern Trains Limited, who operate trains in Fylde, have also recently updated their CCTV strategy as part of their broader plans to improve accessibility across its network. This strategy covers CCTV maintenance, renewals and enhancements.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of new housing developments had a Section 38 agreement in place at the start of construction in each of the last five years; and what enforcement measures are in place for developers who do not fulfil the terms of such agreements.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Under Section 38 of the Highways Act 1980, developers may enter into agreements with local highway authorities to enable the adoption of new roads. Each authority applies its own procedures and fees, and there is currently no national system to track these agreements or link them to housing developments. Authorities may refuse adoption if roads are not built to the required standard, ensuring that the cost of remedial work does not fall on the public purse. Many authorities also require financial bonds to safeguard completion if a developer defaults. The Department is aware of a decline in road adoption rates across England and is actively investigating the issue to identify potential improvements.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking with local councils to help (a) prevent over-licensing and (b) to maintain (i) quality and (ii) safety standards for private hire vehicle drivers.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government is responsible for setting the regulatory structure within which licensing authorities in England administer the taxi and private hire vehicle licensing regime. All applicants for a taxi or private hire vehicle driver’s licence must be deemed fit and proper to hold one. Under this system licensing authorities have the flexibility to set the standards they consider are appropriate. The Department for Transport issues statutory and best practice guidance to assist licensing authorities with this function, to promote safe and accessible services through proportionate regulation.
As recommended in the statutory guidance, all taxi and private hire vehicle licensing authorities in England have advised the Department that for drivers they require the highest level of vetting available, an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check and a check of both the children’s and adults’ Barred Lists. The statutory guidance recommends that a licensing authority’s test of a driver’s language proficiency should cover both oral and written English language skills. This is so drivers can understand policies and guidance related to the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults and can apply them to identify and act on signs of exploitation.
The best practice guidance recommends that licensing authorities should require taxi and private hire vehicle drivers to undertake training and/or assessment focussed on driver attitudes and behaviours. Where an authority has specific concerns about the driving ability of a driver, for example through passenger complaints, it would be appropriate for the authority to consider whether the driver in question should undertake a practical driving ability training course or assessment to address those concerns.
The Department for Transport will legislate to tackle inconsistent standards of taxi and private hire vehicle driver licensing more broadly. We are considering all options including out of area working, national standards and enforcement – seeking the best overall outcomes for passenger safety. In the interim the Department is reviewing licensing authorities’ compliance with existing guidance and determining how the statutory guidance on protecting children and vulnerable adults can be strengthened to further protect the public.
A consultation on making all local transport authorities responsible for taxi and private hire vehicle licensing, which would increase consistency in licensing and make better use of enforcement powers, will be launched shortly.