Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with local authorities on the variances in the eligibility criteria for disabled bus passes.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS) provides free off-peak bus travel to those with eligible disabilities and those of state pension age, currently sixty-six.

The disabled eligibility criteria are set out in section 146 of the Transport Act 2000. To support local authorities, the Department maintains guidance on assessing the eligibility of disabled applicants, which is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-forlocal-authorities-on-eligibility-for-disabled-people. However, local authorities are responsible for administering disabled concessionary bus passes and the Department plays no role in the assessment of applications.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps her Department has taken to support disabled people using public transport.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The government is committed to improving public transport services so they are more inclusive and enable disabled people to travel safely, confidently and with dignity. On 17 December, the government introduced the Bus Services (No.2) Bill to put the power over local bus services back into the hands of local leaders and is intended to ensure networks meet the needs of the communities who rely on them, including for disabled people. The Bill includes measures which will make bus travel more accessible and inclusive.

On 1 October 2024, the first phase of the Public Service Vehicles (Accessible Information) Regulations 2023 came into force, meaning that newer vehicles providing local services must provide audible and visible information on stops, destinations and diversions. The majority of services will need to comply by October 2026.

Ensuring the rail network is also accessible is at the heart of our passenger-focused approach to improving rail services. We know that the experience for disabled people when traveling on rail too often falls short of what is expected and what passengers deserve. We are committed to improving the experience for disabled passengers and have committed to publishing an accessibility roadmap to explain the actions we are taking to improve accessibility ahead of Great British Rail.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the resilience of the water supply in the long term in Plymouth.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government and the Environment Agency work with water companies and other stakeholders to monitor and manage water resources in England. Water companies are responsible for ensuring a secure water supply for their customers. Plymouth lies in South West Water's Roadford Water Resource Zone, which is supplied from reservoirs, rivers, and some boreholes.

Every 5 years water companies must prepare and maintain a water resources management plan (WRMP). The WRMP sets out how a company intends to achieve a secure supply of water for customers, resilient to droughts, and with environmental protections and enhancements over the next 25 years. WRMP's are closely assessed by Ofwat and the Environment Agency, who advise on the acceptability of plans before companies are given permission to publish by the government.

South West Water's latest draft WRMP, which includes the measures it will take to ensure the resilience of water supply in the Roadford zone, was scrutinised by regulators and given permission for publication in January 2025, subject to some revisions, which the company is currently making.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many water supply outages there were in Plymouth in (a) 2022, (b) 2023, (c) 2024 and (d) 2025.

Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Under the Security and Emergency Measures Direction 2022 (SEMD), all water companies must report to Defra any water outages that impact over 5,000 properties or will last over 24 hours.

In 2025, one incident affecting Plymouth was reported to Defra. Between 21 April and 23 April, a burst water main at a Dousland Water Treatment Works caused a water supply outage to approximately 9,800 properties in Plymouth.

There were no water supply outages in Plymouth reported to Defra in 2022, 2023, and 2024.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to support pensioners who have (a) become disabled after reaching State Pension age and (b) require (i) adapted vehicles and (ii) mobility assistance.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Attendance Allowance (AA) is a weekly benefit for those over State Pension age who require care or supervision as a result of a physical or mental disability. AA is paid at two rates. A higher rate of £110.40 a week for claimants who need help or supervision for both day and night or who are terminally ill. And a lower rate of £73.90 for claimants who need frequent help or supervision during the day or night.

AA provides financial support towards the extra costs faced by disabled people. It is neither means-tested, nor based on National Insurance contributions paid and recipients can choose how they wish to spend it. Receipt of AA can provide a passport to additional amounts in means-tested benefits (notably Pension Credit and Housing Benefit) for those on low incomes and to Carer’s Allowance for the person providing care for them.

AA has never included a mobility component and so cannot be used in payment for a leased Motability Scheme vehicle. Government mobility support is focused on people who are disabled earlier in life.

There is no constraint on what an award of Attendance Allowance can be spent on, and a recipient may choose to use this benefit to fund mobility aids.

There are no plans to review the Scheme’s qualifying benefits.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of expanding the eligibility criteria for the Motability Scheme to include Attendance Allowance claimants.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Attendance Allowance (AA) is a weekly benefit for those over State Pension age who require care or supervision as a result of a physical or mental disability. AA is paid at two rates. A higher rate of £110.40 a week for claimants who need help or supervision for both day and night or who are terminally ill. And a lower rate of £73.90 for claimants who need frequent help or supervision during the day or night.

AA provides financial support towards the extra costs faced by disabled people. It is neither means-tested, nor based on National Insurance contributions paid and recipients can choose how they wish to spend it. Receipt of AA can provide a passport to additional amounts in means-tested benefits (notably Pension Credit and Housing Benefit) for those on low incomes and to Carer’s Allowance for the person providing care for them.

AA has never included a mobility component and so cannot be used in payment for a leased Motability Scheme vehicle. Government mobility support is focused on people who are disabled earlier in life.

There is no constraint on what an award of Attendance Allowance can be spent on, and a recipient may choose to use this benefit to fund mobility aids.

There are no plans to review the Scheme’s qualifying benefits.

Found: Herefordshire) Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat; North Devon) Michelle Scrogham (Labour; Barrow and Furness) Fred Thomas

Found: To lead us off, I call Fred Thomas.