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Written Question
Active Travel
Thursday 8th February 2024

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had discussions with the (a) Secretary of State for Levelling Up and Communities and (b) devolved Administrations on the potential impact of (i) tram and (ii) light rail projects on active travel infrastructure.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport has regular discussions with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, as well as with the devolved administrations. However, no specific discussions have taken place with these bodies regarding the impact of light rail projects on active travel infrastructure.

Local transport authorities are responsible for bringing forward mass transit projects, including developing proposals regarding technology choice, route selection and alignment. The Department encourages authorities to consider how mass transit schemes can provide effective integration with other modes, including active travel.


Written Question
Transport: Research
Wednesday 15th March 2023

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support scientific innovation in sustainable transport research.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Net Zero Innovation Board oversees the Government’s portfolio of research supporting the transition to net zero and is chaired by the Government Chief Scientific Adviser. The Department for Transport is investing £377m over the current Spending Review period into research & development on decarbonisation.


Written Question
Electric Vehicles: VAT
Thursday 2nd March 2023

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the level of VAT applied to electric vehicle charging on his electric vehicle policies.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Government has committed to keeping the transition to electric vehicles affordable for consumers across the UK. Taxation policy and its impacts are taken into consideration when developing policies that will support and accelerate the transition to zero emission vehicles. Taxation is a matter for HM Treasury and the Chancellor keeps all taxes under review.


Written Question
Department for Transport: Recruitment
Friday 24th February 2023

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much his Department spent on recruitment consultants in each of the last three years.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The records available to the Department for Transport via the Crown Commercial Service (CCS), as declared by suppliers on their permanent recruitment frameworks, for each of the last three years are as follows:

2020/21

£100,044.62

2021/22

£45,532.00

2022/23

£189,376.90 (to date)

Note: Recruitment consultancies are used by the department to attract the talent and specialist skills required to deliver its strategic objectives and services. It is possible, but unlikely, that some spend has occurred that has not been declared by suppliers, although the Department’s internal finance system does not record data in such a way that allows this to be cross-checked. These totals are inclusive of recruitment to the Department for Transport and its Executive Agencies (DVSA, DVLA, MCA, VCA and ATE) and for both senior civil service (SCS) and delegated grade recruitment. The figure for 20/21 was higher than expected due to a higher volume of recruitment targeted at individuals with specialist/hard to recruit skills. The increase in 22/23 over the previous year results from a renewed focus on the department’s places for growth agenda and a growing focus on recruiting outside London.


Written Question
Department for Transport: Recruitment
Tuesday 7th February 2023

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much his Department has spent on head-hunters in each of the last three years.

Answered by Jesse Norman

Due to the financial reporting system in the department it is not possible to separate out spend associated with external recruitment consultancy services from all other consultancy spend for the majority of departmental recruitment.


Written Question
Department for Transport: Redundancy Pay
Thursday 17th November 2022

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the cost to the public purse has been of Ministerial severance pay in his Department in each year since 1 January 2016.

Answered by Jesse Norman

Under the Ministerial and Other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991, eligible Ministers who leave office are entitled to a one off payment equivalent to one quarter of their annual salary at the point at which they leave Government.

This applies only where a Minister is under 65 and is not appointed to a ministerial office within three weeks of leaving government.

Individuals may waive the payment to which they are entitled. That is a matter for their personal discretion, but this approach has been taken in the past.

Details of such payments are published in departmental annual reports and accounts, and ministerial salaries are published on GOV.UK at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1027301/Salaries_of_Members_of_Her_Majestys_Government_-_Financial_Year_2021-22_-_Publication.pdf.


Written Question
Driving Licences: Italy
Tuesday 28th September 2021

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress he has made on reaching a reciprocal arrangement for the recognition of driving licences with Italy.

Answered by Trudy Harrison

The Department for Transport has successfully agreed arrangements with Italy for the mutual recognition of photocard licences. As such, visitors with UK photocard licences will not need to carry an additional International Driving Permit when driving in Italy.

We have also secured interim arrangements with the Italian authorities which will allow UK licence holders resident in Italy to continue to use their valid UK licence until the end of this year. We are working with the Italian Government to finalise a permanent licence exchange agreement as soon as possible.


Written Question
Roads: Freight
Thursday 23rd September 2021

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the end of freedom of movement on the haulage industry; and what steps the Government is taking to tackle HGV driver shortages.

Answered by Trudy Harrison

The Trade and Co-operation Agreement between the UK and the EU delivers a good outcome for UK-based international hauliers. The vast majority of journeys to and from the EU will be able to continue without the need for any additional permits, and UK hauliers also retain rights to do work within and between EU Member States, again with no extra bureaucracy.

UK hauliers will, of course, have to ensure that they comply with the immigration rules applied by EU Member States. The rules for British Citizens taking up work or providing a service in the EU will depend on the rules in individual EU Member States, as some Member States may require a visa and/or work permit from British Citizens intending to work or to provide a service there.

The Department for Transport is working across Government and with the road haulage industry to address the current HGV driver shortage, which is an issue affecting many countries worldwide. For example, the International Road Transport Union predicts a gap of 185,000 drivers by 2027 in Germany.

The Government has already taken firm action, including through training for jobseekers, additional funding for apprenticeships, and taking measures to increase lorry driver testing capacity to bring new drivers into the industry as soon as possible.


Written Question
Aviation: Sustainable Development
Tuesday 18th May 2021

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to undertake a consultation on the (a) steps needed to encourage the use of sustainable aviation fuels and (b) creation of a British sustainable aviation industry.

Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)

The Government believes that sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) have an important role to play in reducing aviation emissions and we are already providing strong support to the sector through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) and industry competitions.

To further build on this support, as part of the Prime Minister's 10 Point Plan, the Government announced an additional £18m in funding as well as an intention to consult on a blending mandate to drive SAF uptake in the UK. This consultation is planned for the summer and will be complemented by supporting ambitions presented in the department’s upcoming Transport Decarbonisation Plan and Net Zero Aviation Consultation.

Beyond this, the Government is committed to continue working with stakeholders through the Jet Zero Council’s SAF Delivery Group (15 meetings convened to date since November 2020) and other existing channels to explore what further policies are needed to support the sector’s development.


Written Question
Driving Tests: Coronavirus
Thursday 10th September 2020

Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he is taking steps to change the DVSA driving test booking system to prioritise rebooking by people who had booked and paid for their tests prior to the covid-19 lockdown.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

Practical driving tests resumed in England on 22 July 2020. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) did prioritise driving tests for candidates who had booked and paid for a test before the COVID-19 lockdown. From 16 July 2020, the DVSA sent emails and text messages to those candidates in batches, and invited them to go online and book a test. Test bookings for new candidates restarted from 21 August 2020.