Asked by: James Daly (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of registered keepers of vehicles are not readily traceable or contactable.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
Based on the latest available data, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is confident that 92.44% (46,707,158) of the keepers on record are contactable and traceable based on the information held on the DVLA’s records.
Of the remaining 7.56% of vehicles, 5.85% (2,957,366) are shown on the DVLA’s records as being ‘in trade’. These are vehicles for which the DVLA has been notified that the previous keeper has sold or disposed of the vehicle to a motor trader. Until the DVLA is notified of a new keeper they will remain shown as “in trade”. This is a legitimate status for a vehicle record until the vehicle is sold on or otherwise disposed of by the motor trader.
A further 1.36% (686,074) are vehicles that are taxed or notified as being kept off the road but there is no current registered keeper on the DVLA’s records. In some cases these will be vehicles which have recently been sold and the DVLA has not yet been notified of the new keeper.
The remaining 0.35% (175,782) are vehicles for which the DVLA does not have a full address on record which may make tracing a keeper more difficult.
Asked by: James Daly (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will ensure that the seven mile, 20 mile, and 30 mile rule is adhered to when making changes to driving test centre locations, ensuing that those in urban areas are no more than seven miles from a centre, those in small towns are never more than 20 miles from a driving test centre and those in the most rural areas are never more than 30 miles from a driving test centre.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency is in the process of reviewing the distance to travel criteria policy. Adhering to the seven miles, 20 miles, and 30 miles rule will form part of that review.
Asked by: James Daly (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent cost benefit analysis he has carried out on requiring HGV drivers to renew their licence at 45 and every five years thereafter until they hit 65 and then every year; and what assessment he has made of the effect of those requirements on levels of recruitment and retraining of HGV drivers.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
While age on its own is not a reliable indicator of health, it is widely accepted that the likelihood of developing conditions which may affect fitness to drive increases with age. The licence renewal process provides for the driver to make a declaration regarding their health and to submit a medical report that is completed by a doctor following an examination. This process is designed to be balanced and proportionate and reflect the greater road safety risks posed by the driving of larger vehicles.
Asked by: James Daly (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the pass rates were for each driving instructor in England in the latest period for which data is available; and whether his Department is taking steps to (a) increase quality standards in that profession and (b) introduce recognition for driving instructors with consistently high pass rates.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
The pass rates of individual approved driving instructors (ADI) are not published. Not all driving test candidates are taught to drive by an approved instructor and so not all completed driving tests will contain data relating to an ADI. It is also a matter of choice, by the ADI, to display their certificate of registration when they put forward a candidate for test.
Asked by: James Daly (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with his Italian counterpart on the right of former UK residents living in Italy to use their UK driving licence.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
The Secretary of State for Transport discussed the mutual exchange of driving licences with Minister Enrico Giovannini on 3 May 2022. Further constructive engagement has followed at official level with both sides working at pace to finalise a new bilateral agreement to allow people resident in Italy to exchange their UK licence for an Italian one without needing to take a driving test and vice versa.
Asked by: James Daly (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has plans to reinstate hard shoulders on SMART motorways.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
In November 2021, the Transport Select Committee published its Third Report of Session 2021-22 following its inquiry into the rollout and safety of smart motorways. The Committee agreed that the Government was right to focus on upgrading the safety of All Lane Running (ALR) smart motorways rather than reinstating the hard shoulder, which the Committee recognised could put more drivers and passengers at risk of death or serious injury on our roads.
Having carefully considered the Committee’s report, the Department is taking forward all its recommendations. This includes pausing the roll-out of ALR smart motorway schemes yet to commence construction until five years of safety data is available for ALR smart motorways introduced before 2020. We are continuing to act to make sure all existing ALR smart motorways are as safe as possible with over £900m being invested, including for the construction of additional emergency areas and the roll-out of Stopped Vehicle Detection technology across existing ALR motorways.