Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions officials in his Department have had with the Pensions Regulator on the decision to disqualify Stagecoach from bidding on three rail franchises.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Department for Transport officials had no discussions with The Pensions Regulator in respect of the Department’s intention to disqualify Stagecoach from the three franchise competitions before making that decision. All bidders were given the same opportunity to bid compliantly and they were warned not to submit bids which were not compliant. Stagecoach breached established rules and, in doing so, they are responsible for their own disqualification.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to help safeguard the pensions of rail workers employed by (a) Stagecoach and (b) Virgin Trains.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Responsibility for providing pensions for employees in the rail franchising system resides with train operators. Under current franchising arrangements when contracts are awarded train operators are required, under the terms of Schedule 16 of the Franchise Agreement, to provide pensions. This requirement will continue to apply when the new train operator takes over responsibility for pensions in which the current rail workers employed by Stagecoach and Virgin Trains participate.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether any Government-owned companies are responsible for train maintenance on the West Coast mainline.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
There are no Government-owned companies responsible for the maintenance of trains operated by franchisees on the West Coast mainline. Direct Rail Services, a subsidiary of the Government-owned Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, does have depots at Crewe and Carlisle for the maintenance of its own train fleet and provides some support services, such as rescue locomotives, for franchised operators.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which companies are responsible for train maintenance on the West Coast Main Line; and by whom those companies are owned.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
There are a number of train operating companies that operate on the West Coast mainline and their train maintenance is an individual commercial decision for each of these operators.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to amend regulations related to school bus services to prevent unrestrained passenger travel on motorways.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Government follows European standards for buses. These standards are kept under constant review by an international group of experts, and the UK is an active participant in that process.
Since 1 October 2001, it has been a requirement that seat belts must be installed in forward- and rear-facing seats in all new buses, coaches and minibuses. The only exemption from this requirement is for buses that are designed for urban use with standing passengers. This exemption is permitted because these buses are typically used for journeys that are short both in duration and distance, undertaken at moderate speeds and on urban routes.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to raise awareness with (a) taxi firms and (b) bus companies of child sexual exploitation.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The legislation that provides for licensing of taxi and private hire vehicle services is enabling in its nature, giving local licensing authorities the discretion to set standards and requirements that they deem to be appropriate. This includes the mandating of child exploitation and abuse awareness training.
Following Royal Assent to the Policing and Crime Act earlier this year the Department for Transport will for the first time issue Statutory Guidance, this will include specific advice on practical measures to reduce the risk of sexual exploitation and abuse of children and vulnerable adults when using these services. This guidance will be consulted on shortly.
The majority of bus services in the UK are run by private sector bus operators in a deregulated environment. Those operators have a duty to ensure their employees behave in accordance with the requirements of all relevant legislation.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which rolling stock on Northern Rail is (a) compliant with rail vehicle accessibility regulations and (b) has been given exemptions from rail vehicle accessibility regulations.
Answered by Paul Maynard
Accessibility standards for trains operated on the mainline are set out in either the Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations 1998 or the Persons of Reduced Mobility Technical Specification for Interoperability (PRM-TSI) (under the Railways (Interoperability) Regulations 2011).
The following units are either built or have been upgraded to these standards:
Class 144; 1x2 car unit, , Class 321/9 – 3x4 car units, Class 322 – 5x4 car units, Class 333 – 16x4 car units.
The following fleets are currently undergoing upgrade programmes which are phased over a period of time. Accordingly, some units in each of these fleets will already have been upgraded, while others are scheduled to be upgraded between now and the end of 2019. The Department does not hold ‘live’ information about the number of units of each fleet that have been upgraded to date.
The fleets are:
Class 150/1 – 47x2 car units, Class 150/2 – 11x2 car units, Class 155 – 7x2 car units, Class 156 – 24x2 car units, Class 158/0 – 8x3 car units, Class 319/3 – 6x4 car units.
Other fleets currently operated by Northern which are to be retained after 1 January 2020 must be upgraded by the end of 2019. Northern will however be introducing 281 new rail vehicles by 2019 to replace outdated rolling stock.
Under the Railways (Interoperability) Regulations 2011, the Secretary of State has power to grant dispensations from the requirement to comply with one or more standards of the PRM-TSI. The following classes of vehicle operated by Northern have been granted dispensations:
Class 150, Class 156, Class 319/3, Class 321/9, Class 322. We are currently reviewing a request for dispensation for Class 158 vehicles. Details of the dispensations granted can be found on our website: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/heavy-rail-fleets-2020-targeted-compliance .
No exemptions have been granted against the Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations 1998.