Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to (a) recognise and (b) protect vessels carrying British personnel and civilians and lost to hostile action in a way that is comparable to military maritime graves; if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of using the Armed Forces Bill 2026 to do this; if she will consider extending a framework consistent with international principles on underwater cultural heritage to Government-owned wrecks in international waters; and whether the wreck of the SS Tilawa will be considered for designation as a protected heritage site.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The sinking of the SS Tilawa, and many other merchant vessels during the world wars, represents a tragic loss of life that we must all strive to remember and reflect upon. It is right that we honour and recognise this sacrifice and strive to ensure the grave sites of those who have been lost receive appropriate protection. While the specific scope and purpose of the Armed Forces Bill preclude such an extension to merchant wrecks, we will continue to ensure underwater cultural heritage receives the highest levels of protection available in accordance with international law and best practice.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the review of the Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) mandate will (a) take into account the latest data published by Autotrader showing that the average price of a new Electric Vehicles is now lower than petrol vehicles and (b) consider the role of the ZEV mandate in helping to achieve this outcome.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The long-committed Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Mandate Review will be published by early 2027 and we will begin engagement this year. This Review will take into account a wide range of data to understand ZEV market conditions.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 17 February 2026 to Question 112445 on Shipping and with reference to section 4 of her Department's publication entitled Seafarers in the UK Shipping Industry: 2025, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the (a) level of the availability and (b) uptake of ratings apprenticeships.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department remains committed to increasing the number of seafaring jobs and ratings apprenticeships in the UK. The apprenticeship levy remains available for use in the maritime industry, including for ratings apprenticeships in England, and the Department and MCA continues to fund 50% of a cadetship through the Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) fund, which was recently increased to £19.4m.
Apprenticeships are a devolved matter, with ratings apprenticeships available in England in areas including deck rating, marine engineering and officer of the watch. Officials are engaging with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions to increase the uptake of maritime apprenticeships, particularly in areas where industry has reported skills shortages. We regularly discuss relevant areas with other Departments.
The recommendations of the review of the effectiveness of funding for UK seafarer training are being assessed by officials.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, further to the Answer of 17 February 2026 to Question 112445 on Shipping, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the (a) availability and (b) uptake of ratings apprenticeships in England and Wales.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department remains committed to increasing the number of seafaring jobs and ratings apprenticeships in the UK. The apprenticeship levy remains available for use in the maritime industry, including for ratings apprenticeships in England, and the Department and MCA continues to fund 50% of a cadetship through the Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) fund, which was recently increased to £19.4m.
Apprenticeships are a devolved matter, with ratings apprenticeships available in England in areas including deck rating, marine engineering and officer of the watch. Officials are engaging with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions to increase the uptake of maritime apprenticeships, particularly in areas where industry has reported skills shortages. We regularly discuss relevant areas with other Departments.
The recommendations of the review of the effectiveness of funding for UK seafarer training are being assessed by officials.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the recommendations in the independent review of the effectiveness of funding for UK seafarer training, published by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency on 13 April 2026.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department remains committed to increasing the number of seafaring jobs and ratings apprenticeships in the UK. The apprenticeship levy remains available for use in the maritime industry, including for ratings apprenticeships in England, and the Department and MCA continues to fund 50% of a cadetship through the Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) fund, which was recently increased to £19.4m.
Apprenticeships are a devolved matter, with ratings apprenticeships available in England in areas including deck rating, marine engineering and officer of the watch. Officials are engaging with industry and the Department for Work and Pensions to increase the uptake of maritime apprenticeships, particularly in areas where industry has reported skills shortages. We regularly discuss relevant areas with other Departments.
The recommendations of the review of the effectiveness of funding for UK seafarer training are being assessed by officials.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of including provisions for the protection of transport workers’ pensions during the transition to Great British Railways in the Railways Bill.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
After the transition to Great British Railways, we plan for the Railways Pension Scheme to continue to be the primary vehicle through which rail employees build up their pension provision. The protections within the 1993 Railways Act remain unchanged by the Railways Bill and consequentially pensions are not mentioned in the Bill.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the levels of challenges for transport workers in the transition to Great British Railways.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
In accordance with TUPE regulations, I can confirm that existing train operator staff transferring to the public-sector operator will do so with their contractual terms and conditions protected. In the meantime, we are keeping trade union leaders informed on all relevant matters through the Rail Engagement Group.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the establishment of Great British Railways on the statutory duty to consult with the public on any significant change to Schedule 17 of the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Train operating companies are expected to maintain the ticket office opening hours set out in Schedule 17 to the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement (TSA). When a train operator proposes a "major change" to opening hours, they are required to undertake a consultation as set out in the TSA.
The processes set out in Schedule 17 of the TSA will continue to apply as operators transfer into public ownership. Importantly, any changes to the TSA can only be made with wider agreement across the industry, providing a strong level of protection and ensuring that established safeguards cannot be unilaterally altered.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with (a) Ministers and (b) officials on the (i) the transfer of workers from private Train Operating Companies into the Department for Transport Operator and (ii) the transfer of workers from (A) the Department for Transport Operator and (B) Network Rail into Great British Railways.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Officials regularly update Ministers as part of every transfer of train operating companies’ services into public ownership. This includes discussions about the transfer of staff to the new public sector operator, which will be a subsidiary of Department for Transport Operator (DFTO), under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations (TUPE) process.
Establishing Great British Railways (GBR) is a priority for the Government, so the Secretary of State holds regular discussions with Ministers and officials. These discussions would include the transition into GBR of DFTO and Network Rail.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2026 to Question 110104 on the Emissions Trading Scheme, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of phasing in the expansion of the Emissions Trading Scheme to maritime, with reference to the approach of the EU equivalent.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Maritime Decarbonisation Strategy (MDS), published in 2025, sets out how we will decarbonise UK maritime transport, including through the inclusion of domestic maritime sector in the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) from July this year. Given the long lifespan of shipping vessels, action needs to be taken now to meet the goals of the MDS, helping the sector move towards a lower carbon future and contribute to UK net zero obligations.
To support maritime operators during implementation of the Scheme the Government will allow operators to wait and surrender allowances for the first two scheme years, providing further opportunity to familiarise themselves with UK ETS and the digital systems. Additionally, whilst reporting has been paused, operators will already be familiar with Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV), under both the existing UK MRV, and the EU MRV regimes.
The Government will monitor the impacts of the scheme and has committed to review the effectiveness of the scheme, including the threshold and the exemptions, in 2028.