Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an estimate of the potential impact of the introduction of sustainable aviation fuel on the cost of flights in the next five years.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Government has committed to introduce a mandate to supply sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from 2025 to help decarbonise the aviation sector in line with our Jet Zero Strategy. The Government recently launched a consultation on the future levels of the SAF mandate targets including analysis of the costs and benefits of a range of trajectories.
The uncertainty around future SAF costs makes it difficult to predict exactly how much ticket prices could increase by. However, any impact is expected to be relatively small.
Passing SAF costs onto passengers is ultimately a commercial decision for airlines.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to reduce the age requirement to obtain a train driving licence to 18.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Department is currently undertaking a post implementation review of the Train Driving Licences and Certificates Regulations 2010, which establishes the licensing and certification requirements to be a train driver on the mainline railway in Great Britain. The review considers all aspects of the regime, including minimum age requirements. The full findings of the review, including relevant conclusions and recommendations, will be published by the summer, and my Department will consider any options for change in light of the reviews’ recommendations.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which phases of HS2 will be delayed; how long will those delays will be; and if he will he make a statement.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
HS2’s opening stage will be delivered to schedule, with the first high-speed services running between Old Oak Common in west London and Birmingham Curzon Street, by 2033.
We remain committed to delivering HS2 services to Euston, and will address affordability pressures to ensure the overall spending profile is manageable. We will therefore take the time to ensure we have an affordable and deliverable station design, delivering Euston alongside high-speed infrastructure to Manchester.
On Phase 2a (West Midlands to Crewe), the Department for Transport expects to re-phase construction by two years with an aim to deliver high-speed services to Crewe and the North West as soon as possible after accounting for the delay in construction. The updated delivery-into-service range will be formally confirmed later this year.
On the Phase 2b Western Leg (Crewe to Manchester), the High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill is currently working its way through Parliament and the Government is continuing to look to deliver this section of the railway within the existing 2035-2041 delivery-into-service range.
No delivery-into-service range has yet been set for HS2 East, as the section remains in early development.
A Written Ministerial Statement was laid on 9 March 2023 and I responded to an Urgent Question on HS2 on 14 March 2023.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure the aviation industry achieves net zero by 2050.
Answered by Jesse Norman
DfT published the Jet Zero Strategy in 2022, setting out the Government’s approach to achieving net zero CO2 emissions by 2050 (or “Jet Zero”) for UK aviation. The Strategy focuses on the rapid development of technologies in a way that maintains the benefits of air travel, whilst maximising the opportunities that decarbonisation brings for the UK.
The Strategy confirmed the Government’s aim for the UK to become a world-leader in zero emission flight and to build a thriving sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) industry. The Department’s target is to deliver at least 10% SAF in the UK jet fuel mix by 2030. On top of existing programmes and support, the Government has made £165 million available to support industry to accelerate the commercialisation of SAF plants in the UK.
The Government is also supporting the development of new and zero emission aircraft technology through the Aerospace Technology Institute and will provide £685 million of funding over the next three years, an increase of £235 million over the previous period.
The Strategy includes an in-sector CO2 emissions reduction trajectory from 2025 to 2050, against which the Department will monitor the sector’s progress on an annual basis from 2025. The Department has also committed to reviewing the overall Strategy every five years, which will allow the Department to adapt it’s approach based on progress made.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has plans to review the criteria with which local authorities assess whether pedestrian crossings should be introduced.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The management of local roads, including provision of pedestrian crossings, is the responsibility of individual local traffic authorities. It is for them to ensure their streets are designed to provide safe movement for all road users.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the cost to the public purse was of funding provided to rail franchises in compensation for strikes in 2022.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
No compensation has been paid by the Department to train operators to cover lost revenue due to strike action in 2022. Under the terms of the operator agreements put in place since the onset of COVID, the Government is on revenue risk not operators and hence operators are not financially affected by any fluctuations in revenue.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding his Department provided to bus services in England in 2022.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Department for Transport has provided nearly £2 billion in emergency and recovery funding since March 2020 to bus operators and local transport authorities in England outside London to support services and mitigate the impacts of the pandemic. £953.4 million of this funding was provided across FY21/22 and FY22/23.
In addition to this recovery funding, we provide £42 million annually through the Bus Service Operator Grant (BSOG) directly to LTAs to subsidise socially necessary bus services. We also provide over £200 million directly to bus operators every year through BSOG to help keep fares down and maintain a larger network than would otherwise be possible.
Transport in London has different funding arrangements and is devolved to the Mayor of London and it is up to him to decide how to best invest in London’s bus network. The TfL settlement of 30th August 2022 supports almost £3.6 billion worth of projects to secure the long-term future of London’s transport network.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the (a) National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers and (b) representatives of rail franchises on planned strike action.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Rail Minister has held a meeting with representatives from trade unions and employers to facilitate a conclusion to industrial action. The Secretary of State has recently held introductory meetings with rail unions, namely the RMT, TSSA and ASLEF, and will continue dialogue. We have made clear that it is for employers and Trade Unions to negotiate the details of essential workforce reforms that would enable an affordable pay deal. Ministers’ role is to facilitate and support the ongoing discussions between the rail industry and Trade Unions regarding workforce reform and pay. Ministers have also met with industry and owning groups to understand their viewpoints.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much financial support her Department has provided to Rail Partners since 20 July 2022.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
None.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether requiring valid identification for voting is a permitted reason for requesting a provisional driver's licence.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The statutory purpose of a driving licence is to convey the licence holder’s entitlement to drive.