Asked by: Paul Flynn (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 26 May 2016 to Question 37602, when in 2017 he plans to publish the contracted researcher's findings on the effect and impact on road safety of the new section 5A offence.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The Department expects to publish the research report in spring 2017.
Asked by: Paul Flynn (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what evidence his Department holds on the effect of the number of roadside drug testing on the number of traffic accidents; and what assessment he has made of improvements in road safety since the introduction of roadside drug testing.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The Department has contracted a researcher to evaluate the effect and impact on road safety of the new section 5A offence, which will include the use of roadside testing. We expect to publish their final report in 2017. The effectiveness of the recent THINK! 2016 drug drive spring campaign which refers to the use of roadside drug testing will also be evaluated and a report will be published in the summer 2016.
Asked by: Paul Flynn (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the fitness-for-purpose of the Air Navigation (Restriction of Flying) (Nuclear Installations) Regulations 2007 and their applicability to technical developments for unmanned aerial vehicles since their coming into force in 2007.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The airspace over UK nuclear licensed sites is restricted by the Air Navigation (Restriction of Flying) (Nuclear Installations) regulations 2007. These impose restricted airspace of a radius between 0.5 and 2 miles to a height of between 1000 and 2400 feet around the centre of all nuclear sites. Airspace usage in the UK is regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Therefore it is a criminal offence to fly in the vicinity of nuclear sites without the permission of the CAA. The CAA and nuclear sites work closely together on this.
All of Britain’s nuclear power stations are robust and designed with safety in mind and are stress-tested to withstand a vast range of potential incidents. The independent regulator continuously monitors and evaluates the safety of each plant alongside the operator to protect it from outside threats.
Asked by: Paul Flynn (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on the motor vehicle emissions retesting programme.
Answered by Lord McLoughlin
The Secretary of State for Transport’s written statement of 10 Nov 2015 advised that the programme was underway and that he would keep the House informed of progress.
The Vehicle Certification Agency has tested 7 independently sourced vehicles at a commercial laboratory. Two more laboratories will increase the volume of tests in the New Year. We intend to test approximately 40 vehicles and a report will be published next spring.