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Written Question
Aviation: Passengers
Wednesday 28th February 2024

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many fines the Civil Aviation Authority imposed on airlines for carrying passengers without correct documents in each year since 2015.

Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

None – this would be outside the scope of regulations overseen by the CAA.


Written Question
Bus Services: North East
Tuesday 19th September 2023

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of trends in the number of bus services in (a) Sunderland and (b) the North East since 2019.

Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

The Government provided over £2 billion in emergency and recovery funding from March 2020 to June 2023 to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic and help protect services. Due to this funding, bus service provision in England outside London has remained above 85% of pre-COVID levels during 2021/22, despite patronage dropping to 10% of pre-pandemic levels during the height of the pandemic.

We recently announced a long-term approach to protect and improve bus services backed by an additional £300 million from July 2023 until April 2025. This funding is in addition to the £163 million the Government is providing to the North East to help local areas level up their bus services and deliver their Bus Service Improvement Plan. Local transport authorities and bus operators in the North East receive funding under the Bus Service Operator Grant to keep fares down and run services that might otherwise be unprofitable and could lead to cancellation. To support this, the Government provides up to £259 million annually for the national scheme.


Written Question
Travel: Coronavirus
Monday 9th November 2020

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the covid-19 pandemic on the travel industry; and what support he plans to provide to travel companies during that pandemic.

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

In response to the impact of and specific challenges posed by COVID-19 to international travel, the Prime Minister has asked the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and the Secretary of State for Transport to establish the cross-government Global Travel Taskforce, to consider further how government can support the sector to meet these challenges.

The travel sector is crucial to the UK’s economy. The Chancellor has put in place unprecedented support package to help businesses to manage the challenges they are facing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Prime Minister announced on the 31 October, that people and businesses across the UK will be provided with additional financial support as part of the Government’s plan for the next phase of its response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) will remain open until December, with employees receiving 80% of their current salary for hours not worked, up to a maximum of £2,500. Under the extended scheme, the cost for employers of retaining workers will be reduced compared to the current scheme, which ended on the 31 October. This means the extended furlough scheme is more generous for employers than it was in October.


Written Question
Travel: Coronavirus
Wednesday 4th November 2020

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the covid-19 pandemic on travel companies; and what steps the Government is taking to help support the travel industry during the covid-19 pandemic.

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

In response to the impact of and specific challenges posed by COVID-19 to international travel, the Prime Minister has asked the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and the Secretary of State for Transport to establish the cross-government Global Travel Taskforce, to consider further how government can support the sector to meet these challenges.

The travel sector is crucial to the UK’s economy. The Chancellor has put in place unprecedented support package to help businesses to manage the challenges they are facing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Prime Minister announced on the 31 October, that people and businesses across the UK will be provided with additional financial support as part of the Government’s plan for the next phase of its response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) will remain open until December, with employees receiving 80% of their current salary for hours not worked, up to a maximum of £2,500. Under the extended scheme, the cost for employers of retaining workers will be reduced compared to the current scheme, which ended on the 31 October. This means the extended furlough scheme is more generous for employers than it was in October.


Written Question
Airlines: Coronavirus
Tuesday 26th May 2020

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the financial situation of the airline sector.

Answered by Kelly Tolhurst

The Department for Transport is working with airlines, airports and unions to understand the impact that COVID-19 is having on the sector and its workers


Written Question
East Coast Railway Line
Tuesday 14th November 2017

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what enhancement projects are planned for the East Coast Main Line in Control Period 6 in order to accommodate the forecast growth in passengers using that line.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Department for Transport is committed to improving journey for passengers along the East Coast Main Line in Control Period (CP6: 2019-2024) both through infrastructure works and the introduction of improved trains. From December 2018, new Intercity Express Trains will increase the number of seats along the East Coast Main Line. As these new trains continue to be introduced they will reduce journey times, increase capacity and improve the customer experience.

The Statement of Funds Available for CP6 includes funding to continue to take forward the enhancements that now span both Control Period 5 (CP5: 2014-2019) and CP6, including schemes on the East Coast to improve capacity and reduce journey times. In line with the new process for enhancements these schemes will continue to be subject to ongoing consideration to ensure they deliver the best results for both rail users and taxpayers.

We need to ensure investment best addresses the needs of passengers and freight, and that funding commitments appropriately reflect the stage of development of enhancements. This is why we’ll be using a new process to take forward enhancements.

The new process will ensure that enhancements are only committed for development, design or delivery when they have been properly worked through, to avoid the problems of the past, where schemes were committed to too early. We will confirm the specific infrastructure enhancements are committed at which stage in due course.


Written Question
East Coast Railway Line
Tuesday 14th November 2017

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Statement of Funds Available for Control Period 6, published on 12 October 2017, how much of the £47.9 billion of Network Rail expenditure will be allocated to investment in the upgrade of the East Coast Main Line.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Statement of Funds Available set out that we assumed expenditure of £47.9bn across the network for Control Period 6. This funding is to be focused on delivering what passengers and businesses want: a dependable railway, with an increased focus on punctuality and reliability. It also includes funding to continue to take forward the enhancements that now span both Control Period 5 (CP5: 2014-2019) and CP6, including to improve capacity and reduce journey times on the East Coast.

We need to ensure investment best addresses the needs of passengers and freight, and that funding commitments appropriately reflect the stage of development of enhancements.

We will confirm through the new process for enhancements the precise levels of funding to achieve these outcomes and will confirm the specific infrastructure enhancements committed at which stage in due course.


Written Question
East Coast Railway Line
Tuesday 14th November 2017

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the expected increase in passengers using the East Coast Main Line over the next 10 years.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The forecasts used as part of the recent case for investment in East Coast Main Line enhancements for passengers using inter city services equates to approximately 22% growth over the next 10 years.

Demand forecasts are frequently updated and reviewed by both the Department and Network Rail as part of the long term planning process.


Written Question
East Coast Railway Line
Tuesday 14th November 2017

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the economic value of the East Coast Main Line to the UK economy.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Department has not made an assessment of the economic value of the East Coast Mainline as a whole. However, the impact of improvements to East Coast Mainline services are considered as part of their appraisal, including any wider impacts on the UK economy.

The East Coast Mainline is a critical service supporting economic activity, connecting cities and businesses across England and Scotland.


Written Question
Tyne and Wear Metro: Rolling Stock
Tuesday 19th September 2017

Asked by: Julie Elliott (Labour - Sunderland Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to announce a decision on the delivery of a new train fleet for the Tyne and Wear Metro.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Department for Transport and HM Treasury officials continue to work with Nexus regarding their proposals for new rolling stock on the Metro.