Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason the CAA cannot release occurrence information on pilot fatigue events.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (“MOR”) Regulations mean that the Civil Aviation Authority can only use information from MORs for the purpose for which they have been collected. The CAA does not make any information from MORs available. The CAA only uses information from MORs to maintain or improve aviation safety, not to attribute blame or liability.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many incidents of pilot fatigue have been reported to the Civil Aviation Authority in each of the past 10 years.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Where a fatigue issue may have led to a safety incident, the UK CAA's Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (MOR) scheme requires that operators send a report to the UK CAA. However, these reports can only be used to improve aviation safety, and the CAA cannot release occurrence information on pilot fatigue events.
The risk of flight crew fatigue is managed under regulations which limit the number of hours pilots can be on duty over a given period of time. The CAA monitors and oversees UK Airlines’ management of flight time to ensure that airlines have appropriate and effective systems in place to manage fatigue.
Although the UK CAA do interact with the HSE on matters of mutual interest, it should be noted that the HSE has no remit in regard to the FTL (Flight Time Limitations) regulations.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many occasions in the last year the Health and Safety Executive has discussed the issue of pilot fatigue with the Civil Aviation Authority.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Where a fatigue issue may have led to a safety incident, the UK CAA's Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (MOR) scheme requires that operators send a report to the UK CAA. However, these reports can only be used to improve aviation safety, and the CAA cannot release occurrence information on pilot fatigue events.
The risk of flight crew fatigue is managed under regulations which limit the number of hours pilots can be on duty over a given period of time. The CAA monitors and oversees UK Airlines’ management of flight time to ensure that airlines have appropriate and effective systems in place to manage fatigue.
Although the UK CAA do interact with the HSE on matters of mutual interest, it should be noted that the HSE has no remit in regard to the FTL (Flight Time Limitations) regulations.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if she will outline the steps and decision-making criteria for awarding the Army Collective Training Service contract.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Collective Training Transformation Programme (CTTP) will deliver the new Army Collective Training Service (ACTS) through a competitive process under Defence and Security Public Contract Regulations (DSPCR) 2011.
Prospective suppliers first completed a Pre-Qualification Questionnaire and then two rounds of tendering. The final bids of the two remaining prospective suppliers have been assessed on technical (performance, collaborative behaviours, social value, Land Industrial Strategy), commercial (terms and conditions), and financial criteria. The highest-scoring bid will win.
In November 2025 I announced that a decision would be announced in February 2026. I have agreed that the programme team can release the results of the competition in January 2026 leading to an announcement in February 2026 of an initial Early Works and Risk Reduction contract with the preferred tenderer.
Once the preferred bidder is chosen and the Defence Investment Plan is published, the programme will submit a Full Business Case in line with normal Government Major Projects Portfolio process before a decision to award the main ACTS contract will be made which is expected later in the summer.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she is planning a further allocation of funding to support grassroots football in Scotland.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to ensuring that communities across the UK benefit from high-quality sport facilities to help enable people to get active. The Government has committed at least £400 million to be invested in new and upgraded grassroots sport facilities over the next four years across the UK.
Funding is subject to departmental business planning processes which are ongoing. Further details will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of her Department's Mass Atrocity Prevention Hub for supporting the UK’s response to the situation in El Fasher, Darfur.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Mass Atrocity Hub is now part of The Conflict and Atrocity Prevention Department, which has been working closely with the Africa Directorate and British Office Sudan since April 2023. Support has included assessing the risk of atrocities in Sudan, providing analytical capabilities to collect, verify and preserve open-source data relating to potential atrocity crimes and violations of international humanitarian law, as well as technical advisory support on the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's atrocity prevention and response workstreams.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to allow people with epilepsy who have been seizure-free for more than ten years while taking medication to apply for a driver's licence.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
People with epilepsy can be issued with a licence to drive Group 1 vehicles (cars and motorcycles) after being seizure free for 12 months (whether or not they are taking medication to treat epilepsy) and as long as they are following their medical professional’s advice on treatment.
The law currently requires a driving licence applicant to have been free from seizures for 10 years, without medication, before the issue of a Group 2 (lorries and buses) licence can be considered.
The Secretary of State for Transport’s Honorary Medical Advisory Panel on driving and disorders of the nervous system, provides advice on the medical standards for driving with epilepsy. In October 2023, the panel confirmed that it was satisfied with the existing requirements but would consider any future research or evidence in this area.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of jury service on people employed on zero hour contracts.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Jury service is an important civic duty, and we want to help jurors feel supported as they undertake this important role. The Government has not made any specific assessment of the impact of jury service on people employed on zero-hour contracts. However, all employees including those employed on zero-hour contracts are legally protected from dismissal or unfair treatment due to jury service under the Employment Rights Act 1996.
All employees who are summoned for jury service are entitled to renumerations for travel, subsistence and loss of earnings expenses, including those on zero-hour contracts. They can also apply for a deferral or excusal based upon financial hardship. The Government keeps all support provided to jurors throughout their service under review.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance her Department has issued to (a) UK charities and (b) the Charity Commission to ensure that charities do not invest in illegal settlements in occupied territory which are a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has not issued such guidance to charities or to the Charity Commission for England and Wales. The Government and Charity Commission for England and Wales expect charities to act lawfully, in line with the charity’s purpose, and in the charity’s best interest.
Any concerns about a charity’s activities should be referred to the charity in the first instance. If their response is unsatisfactory or there is a belief that the charity is acting unlawfully or engaged in misconduct or mismanagement, concerns can be raised with the Charity Commission. The Charity Commission takes such concerns seriously, prioritising resources and taking appropriate and proportionate action. As a civil regulator, the Charity Commission refers all potential criminal matters to the relevant law enforcement body for investigation.
The Charity Commission provides a range of guidance to help charity trustees understand their legal duties and requirements, as well as how to make decisions in the best interests of their charity.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress her Department has made on increasing driving examiner recruitment in Fife.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times.
The driving test centres that serve candidates in Fife are Dunfermline and Kirkcaldy. From a recent recruitment campaign a potential new driving examiner (DE) has been offered a position in Dunfermline. Following successful completion of training and pre-employment checks, it is hopeful the candidate will be in post by autumn. A further potential DE who had been offered a post in Kirkcaldy, has since withdrawn from the process.
DVSA will be undertaking another recruitment campaign shortly and will again advertise for posts in this area.