Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to prevent taxi drivers from refusing to take passengers with guide dogs.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
Sections 168 and 170 of the Equality Act 2010 already require taxi and PHV drivers to accept passengers accompanied by assistance dogs without charging them extra. The Government expects drivers to comply with the law and encourages local licensing authorities to take robust action against those unwilling to do so. Drivers convicted of a relevant offence face fines of up to £1000.
The Government is considering what further action might be required to eliminate illegal discrimination against assistance dog owners, and has accepted the recommendation of the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and PHV licensing that drivers should be required to complete disability awareness training through the introduction of National Minimum Standards. We will bring forward legislation when Parliamentary time permits.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much Government subsidy the Northern railway franchise will receive in the next financial year.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The originally contracted annual subsidy amount payable to Arriva Rail North for 2019/20 was £221m in 2015/16 prices.
However, these amounts will be subject to a number of changes in line with the provisions of the contract, many of which are not currently quantified and won’t be finalised until the after the financial year has ended.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to resolve the industrial dispute affecting the Northern Rail network.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The industrial dispute is a matter between Northern, its employees and their union representative in which the Government cannot intervene directly. However, the Government is keen for these strikes to end. They are having a big impact on the people and businesses of so many communities across the North. The Government has written to the Rail North Partnership (through which the Department and Transport for the North co-manage the Northern franchise) expressing our clear support for a second member of staff on Northern trains who is focused on delivering excellent customer service. Northern have now confirmed to the RMT that there will continue to be a second appropriately trained member of staff on board the trains, and have guaranteed jobs and pay will be protected. The Government therefore continues to call on both parties to engage in talks and resolve the dispute.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will end the toll on the Mersey Gateway Bridge.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Government has no plans to end tolling on the Mersey Gateway Bridge. This is a responsibility for Halton Borough Council.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment the Government has made of merits of lowering the age of eligibility for the older person’s bus pass to 60 years old nationwide.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
Restoring the previous age of eligibility for concessionary bus travel to sixty would re-create the anomaly of some non-disabled people of working-age, some of whom may be on significant wages, being entitled to a free bus pass, which was not the original intention of the national bus concessionary scheme. Re-establishing the link between concessionary bus pass eligibility and the state pension age addresses that issue and will also help the financial sustainability of the scheme.
Local authorities have the discretion to offer concessionary travel to those who are yet to reach the qualifying age, such as have been introduced in London and Liverpool.
Asked by: Faisal Rashid (Labour - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department’s policy is on awarding contracts to companies which have recently issued profit warnings.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
The Department’s remit within the transport sector is primarily delivered through its Arm’s Length Bodies: Network Rail, Highways England and High Speed Two Ltd. Assessments of a company’s ability to deliver its obligations is performed during each procurement exercise by those bodies.