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 impact of the proposed staffing changes on Coastguard operations in North West England.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Plans to move the Coastguard Rescue Service to an expenses-only volunteer model in September will not go ahead, and current arrangements will remain in place.
We will now take time to gather the robust information required to understand the full operational implications of future decisions, as well as the impact on individual Coastguard Rescue Officers (CRO) and the choices they will make. This will involve engaging with CROs directly and ensuring that their views inform the decisions that we will take on the shape of the Coastguard Rescue Service.
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 impact of proposed changes to Coastguard staffing arrangements on volunteer retention.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Plans to move the Coastguard Rescue Service to an expenses-only volunteer model in September will not go ahead, and current arrangements will remain in place.
We will now take time to gather the robust information required to understand the full operational implications of future decisions, as well as the impact on individual Coastguard Rescue Officers (CRO) and the choices they will make. This will involve engaging with CROs directly and ensuring that their views inform the decisions that we will take on the shape of the Coastguard Rescue Service.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the annual cost to her Department of preparing ministers to respond to Westminster Hall Debates.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
It is not possible to provide an exact cost for preparing Ministers to respond to Westminster Hall Debates. There will be differences in the costs of Civil Service, Special Adviser and Ministerial time depending on the policy matter and length of the debate. Debates can also be cross-cutting and require resources from multiple departments or engage departmental bodies.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what mechanisms are available to passengers to report breaches of maximum passenger numbers on public transport services.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Passengers who believe that maximum passenger numbers, crowding standards or other passenger welfare obligations have been breached can raise concerns directly with the relevant transport operator through its complaints process. If they are dissatisfied with the operator's response, rail passengers may escalate complaints to the Rail Ombudsman, while safety concerns relating to crowding can also be reported to the Office of Rail and Road. [orr.gov.uk], [nationalrail.co.uk], [railombudsman.org].
Complaints from passengers about a bus or coach operator should be made directly to the operator in the first instance. If the bus or coach operator has not responded to a complaint within 14 working days, or if the passenger is not happy with the response received, they can raise their complaint with Bus Users UK, an organisation that represents the interests of bus and coach users.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of consumer protections available to passengers whose journeys are disrupted by failures of the EU Entry/Exit System.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Entry/Exit System has been introduced by the European Union to increase border security and we have consistently sought to urge pragmatism to ensure that British travellers do not face disruption, The Transport Secretary has spoken with the EU Commissioner for Sustainable Travel and Tourism on the matter.
It is, however, inevitable that any new system faces challenges and passengers should not be inconvenienced as this system settles into operation. In July, I met with cross channel ferry operators and reminded them of their obligations to passengers should disruption occur and would encourage any passengers affected by delays at the border to speak with their operators.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with the European Commission on the operational impact of the EU Entry/Exit System on UK travellers.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Secretary of State met with the European Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, Apostolos Tzitzikostas on 13 July. This was a productive call where both agreed on the need to work together to aim for smooth EES checks over the peak summer period to support holidaymakers.
This follows previous engagement with both the Commissioner and the French Transport Minister seeking agreement on increasing staffing levels to support the implementation of EES.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the EU Entry/Exit System on freight movements through the Short Straits.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The government has not made a formal assessment of the impact of the EU Entry/Exit System on freight movements through the short straits as this is an EU system. Hauliers have completed EES checks since October at the short straits portals of Eurotunnel and the Port of Dover. We continue to encourage road transport operators to take the necessary steps to ensure their UK national drivers remain within the Schengen area’s short stay limit for days spent in Europe.
The government knows the importance of freight to our supply chains and to people across the UK. That is why we have supported the Port of Dover and Eurotunnel with £3.5m each in preparing for EES. And earlier this week we announced £20m in funding to further support border infrastructure at the Port of Dover, while continuing to urge pragmatism from our EU partners, while the system beds in.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will consider introducing a requirement for a minimum provision of food supplies for rail companies to provide passengers affected by delays between stations.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government expects train operators to support passengers during disruption. Under the National Rail Conditions of Travel, operators must, where reasonably practicable, provide appropriate assistance, which may include refreshments.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the obligations of landowners near railway tracks to maintain land to avoid the risk of fire causing disruption to rail services.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has not made a specific assessment of the effectiveness of landowners’ obligations in relation to fire prevention adjacent to railway property. Responsibility for managing vegetation and other fire risks rests with the relevant landowner, while Network Rail works with neighbouring landowners where risks to the safe and reliable operation of the railway are identified and undertakes its own vegetation management programme to reduce the risk of disruption.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of additional children eligible for free school meals from September 2026.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
From the start of the 2026/27 academic year, all children in households receiving Universal Credit will be eligible for free school meals (FSM). Over half a million additional children will receive a free, nutritious lunchtime meal every school day. Around 3.4 million children currently receive FSM or universal infant free school meals, and this will rise to around 4 million with the expansion.
We have published data on the number of children who could benefit from expanded provision by constituency/region/local authority at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/free-school-meals-expansion-impact-on-poverty-levels.