Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing ownership records, alongside registered keeper details, on V5C documents.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) maintains a register of vehicles and their keepers in the United Kingdom. The purpose of the vehicle register is to assist in revenue collection, road safety, law enforcement and to record who is responsible for the vehicle’s day-to-day use. The vehicle register held by the DVLA, is not a register of legal title or ownership of vehicles.
The registered keeper of a vehicle can be an individual or a corporate organisation, and they are legally responsible for notifying the DVLA that they have disposed of the vehicle and for notifying them who the new keeper is. Based on the latest available data, the DVLA is confident that just over 92% of the keepers on record are contactable and traceable based on the information held.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of levels of staffing required at railway stations on step-free access at those stations.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Staff will continue to provide face-to-face service on our railways for passengers who need additional support. We are committed to transforming accessibility across the UK rail network and moving staff out of underused ticket offices and into the station will mean they can provide help where it is most needed. Furthermore, we are currently undertaking a full accessibility audit across 2,564 stations across Great Britain to help shape future investment in accessible rail travel.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his comments in an interview with Iain Dale on LBC radio on 11 July 2022, whether he plans to cancel tranches 2 and 3 of East West Rail; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Wendy Morton
Connection Stage 2 (Bletchley to Bedford) and Connection Stage 3 (Bedford to Cambridge) of East West Rail are at development stage. Next steps for the project will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to tackle the driver shortages disrupting the Marston Vale Line run by London North Eastern Railway.
Answered by Wendy Morton
In common with other train operators, the Omicron COVID-19 variant has significantly affected staff availability on London Northwestern Railway (LNR). As a result, LNR has temporarily focused its reduced resources on providing a resilient train service on those routes with the most passengers and where bus replacement would be impractical.
The inconvenience to passengers on the Marston Vale line is regrettable, and we will be working with LNR to ensure that the train service is restored as soon as it can be reliably provided.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish a report on the Network Rail (London to Corby) (Land Acquisition, Level Crossings and Bridge Works) Order application.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The report from the Planning Inspectorate on the Network Rail (London to Corby) (Land Acquisition, Level Crossings and Bridge Works) Transport and Works Act Order application, will be published alongside the decision letter from the Secretary of State when this is made. The Secretary of State will aim to issue his decision as soon as he can.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the process of applying to the DVLA for a provisional licence will resume following the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Applications for provisional driving licences can be made online at https://www.gov.uk/apply-first-provisional-driving-licence
Customers can also make postal applications for a provisional driving licence. However, paper applications are likely to take significantly longer to process in the current circumstances.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to report on the Network Rail (London to Corby) (Land Acquisition, Level Crossings and Bridge Works) Order application.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The decision by the Secretary of State on the Transport and Works Act Order application by Network Rail for the London To Corby (land acquisition and bridge works) Order will be made in the near future.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many train journeys (a) operated by Thameslink, (b) operated by East Midlands Trains and (c) in the UK were disrupted due to buckled tracks in hot weather in 2019.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Although the temperatures seen in late July were exceptional, we recognise the impact that cancellations and alterations to services had on passengers. We are unable to provide the data requested, however, as it is not held by the DfT. The data may be held by Network Rail; we advise you contact them directly for further information or refer to their websites.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with Network Rail on upgrading tracks to prevent buckling in hot weather.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Government recognises passengers need the certainty of reliable and safe journeys, and is determined to work with industry to improve performance on the railway.
With regard to rails buckling, Network Rail have been treating rails to enable them to cope with heat, and have been applying reflective paint to reduce the heat absorbed. Since 2003, these methods have decreased the number of rail buckling incidents by 83%.
After all periods of poor weather, Network Rail undertakes a lessons process to identify actions that were successful in managing the issues and where further action and improvement is needed. In addition, Network Rail is also looking to the longer term and has in place a weather resilience and climate change strategy to ensure the infrastructure can cope with climate change and short-term periods of extreme weather.
One of the top priorities for the Secretary of State and myself is to get the trains running on time, which is why we are investing a record £48bn to modernise our network, boost reliability and create a railway fit for the 21st century.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the oil sector on introducing charging points for electric vehicles at (a) service stations and (b) petrol forecourts.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The Government has had a number of discussions with representatives of the oil sector about the provision of electric vehicle charge points at service stations and petrol forecourts. We are encouraging the private sector to invest in and operate a self-sustaining public network supported by the right policy framework. Only last week, the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Transport met with automotive industry leaders, where there was a discussion about having the right charging infrastructure in place and a number of new commitments about charging were made to make electric vehicles more convenient than ever to own. The Government’s view is that the market is often better placed to identify the right locations for chargepoints and it is essential that viable commercial models are in place to ensure continued maintenance and improvements to the network. As evidence of this, BP Chargemaster, the UK’s largest electric car charge point provider, announced last month that it will install 400 points capable of ultra-fast 150kW charging by 2021 – including 100 at 50 sites by the end of 2019.