Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what economic forecasts his Department has made for the recovery and growth of (a) air transport and (b) the travel sector after the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Robert Courts
DfT has not produced economic forecasts of recovery and growth in the air transport or travel sectors. DfT maintain a capability to produce a range of passenger demand scenarios, reflecting the uncertainty surrounding the potential shape of recovery, for internal use.
The Department recognises the severe impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on travel, and work continues to understand how best the industry can be supported at this time. The Government is working on a strategic framework for the recovery of the sector. It will explore the return to growth of the aviation sector, and will include consideration of workforce and skills, regional connectivity, noise, innovation and regulation, and consumer issues.
Aviation businesses have access to the unprecedented economic support package that the Chancellor has put in place to help businesses to manage the challenges they are facing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition to this, the Airport and Ground Operations Support Scheme (AGOSS) opened for applications on 29 January to provide support for eligible commercial airports and ground handlers in England.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the disproportionate effect of the covid-19 outbreak on regional airports as part of the Government’s Levelling Up agenda.
Answered by Robert Courts
The Government recognises the challenges faced by the aviation sector at this time. The Government is committed to maintaining critical connectivity and through policies like Public Service Obligations the Department for Transport subsidises routes into London.
We have also taken action to support airports through the Airport and Ground Operations Support Scheme (AGOSS). This opened for applications on 29 January to provide support for eligible commercial airports and ground handlers in England. It will provide support up to the equivalent of their business rates liabilities or COVID-19 losses – whichever is lower – in the 2020/21 financial year, subject to certain conditions and a cap per claimant of £8m.
The Government is keen to find ways to work closely with the industry to ease restrictions on international travel gradually and sustainably. The Secretary of State for Transport will lead a successor to the Global Travel Taskforce to develop a framework that can facilitate greater travel when the time is right, while still managing the risk from imported cases and variants.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department plans to take to tackle the effect of the covid-19 pandemic on regional airports.
Answered by Robert Courts
The Department recognises the severe impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on travel, and work continues to understand how best the industry can be supported at this time. The Government is working on a strategic framework for the recovery of the sector. It will explore the return to growth of the aviation sector, and will include consideration of workforce and skills, regional connectivity, noise, innovation and regulation, and consumer issues.
Aviation businesses have access to the unprecedented economic support package that the Chancellor has put in place to help businesses to manage the challenges they are facing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Firms can continue to draw upon the package of measures announced by the Chancellor, including a Bank of England scheme for firms to raise capital, the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, Time to Pay flexibilities with tax bills, financial support for employees including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and VAT deferrals.
In addition to this, the Airport and Ground Operations Support Scheme (AGOSS) opened for applications on 29 January to provide support for eligible commercial airports and ground handlers in England. It will provide support up to the equivalent of their business rates liabilities or COVID-19 losses – whichever is lower – in the 2020/21 financial year, subject to certain conditions and a cap per claimant of £8m.
Through the Global Travel Taskforce, the Government will work closely with the industry to find ways to safely and gradually ease restrictions on international travel. We will set out more detail on this soon.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate the Government has made of the number of British nationals that are unable to return to the UK due to the unavailability of English language test certificates in their country of origin.
Answered by Robert Courts
Travellers must present proof of a negative coronavirus test result taken within the 3 days before their departure to the UK. The Government considered carefully which languages to permit the result notification to be provided in. English, French and Spanish were deemed to be appropriate as the majority of countries’ testing providers could meet this requirement.
The result notification must be understandable to Border Force personnel upon arrival in the UK for enforcement purposes. This is possible with French and Spanish, given the similarity of key wording in the notification to English. Widening the number of languages permitted for the notification would reduce the ability of Border Force to assess adequately the veracity of the result.
There is no requirement for British travellers or residents to register with the FCDO when they travel or live abroad, so the Government does not hold data on the number of British nationals overseas, or those unable to return to the UK for any reason.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans the Government has to expand the number of languages accepted for pre-arrival covid-19 tests.
Answered by Robert Courts
Travellers must present proof of a negative coronavirus test result taken within the 3 days before their departure to the UK. The Government considered carefully which languages to permit the result notification to be provided in. English, French and Spanish were deemed to be appropriate as the majority of countries’ testing providers could meet this requirement.
The result notification must be understandable to Border Force personnel upon arrival in the UK for enforcement purposes. This is possible with French and Spanish, given the similarity of key wording in the notification to English. Widening the number of languages permitted for the notification would reduce the ability of Border Force to assess adequately the veracity of the result.
There is no requirement for British travellers or residents to register with the FCDO when they travel or live abroad, so the Government does not hold data on the number of British nationals overseas, or those unable to return to the UK for any reason.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason pre-arrival covid-19 tests for people arriving in the UK are only accepted in English, French or Spanish.
Answered by Robert Courts
Travellers must present proof of a negative coronavirus test result taken within the 3 days before their departure to the UK. The Government considered carefully which languages to permit the result notification to be provided in. English, French and Spanish were deemed to be appropriate as the majority of countries’ testing providers could meet this requirement.
The result notification must be understandable to Border Force personnel upon arrival in the UK for enforcement purposes. This is possible with French and Spanish, given the similarity of key wording in the notification to English. Widening the number of languages permitted for the notification would reduce the ability of Border Force to assess adequately the veracity of the result.
There is no requirement for British travellers or residents to register with the FCDO when they travel or live abroad, so the Government does not hold data on the number of British nationals overseas, or those unable to return to the UK for any reason.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions the Government has had with representatives of the (a) airline and (b) travel sectors on exiting the Government's covid-19 quarantine strategy.
Answered by Robert Courts
Ministers and officials have engaged extensively with the aviation and travel industries throughout the pandemic. We remain committed to an open engagement with the sector and continue to work with industry to share information and provide industry the opportunity to contribute as policy develops, with the aim of helping retain jobs and return the sector to growth as soon as possible.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Government plans to increase regulated rail fares by RPI from January 2021 based on July's RPI figure.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
The Government’s plans for regulated rail fares will be communicated in due course.
Asked by: Ben Bradshaw (Labour - Exeter)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits on establishing air bridges with countries that can demonstrate they have (a) no significant domestic covid-19 restrictions in place and (b) adequate public health protocols the border that comply with EASA guidance.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The Government is carefully considering the concept of ‘international travel corridors’ (also known as air bridges), which have the potential to remove the need for quarantine measures for incoming passengers. It is currently not agreed Government policy.
Ultimately, we will be guided by the science, and the health of the public will always come first.
Other countries are considering similar proposals.