Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South and South Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what records relating to staff working times are kept by his Department under Regulation 9 of the Working Time Regulations 1998; and how long those records are kept for.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
Most DfT staff are recorded on payroll as being required to work a standard FTE week of 37 hours, well within the maximum hours permitted by the regulations. Standard DfT contracts do not require staff to work at night.
When staff are required to work unsocial hours or additional hours (overtime), this is reflected in their pay and is likewise recorded through payroll data, which is retained for a minimum of seven years.
Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South and South Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the compliance of his Department's staff working from home with the Working Time Regulations 1998.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
The department’s assessment is that staff working from home continue to comply with working time regulations just as they did while working in DfT workplaces. Home and hybrid working offer staff greater autonomy over working time and location, but we will continue to remind staff of their obligation to comply with the regulations (e.g. taking breaks, using annual leave allowances).
Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South and South Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to support Luton Airport’s plan to promote rail travel to its terminal through a new Luton Airport Express on the East Midlands Line.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
Officials are currently involved in collaborative discussions with East Midlands Railway, Govia Thameslink Railway and Luton Airport, covering issues such as service branding, marketing and communications to promote rail travel to Luton Airport and take advantage of the introduction of the Luton Airport DART.
Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South and South Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is working with rail operators to promote the fast service from St Pancras International to Luton Airport Parkway when the DART launches in 2022.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
Officials are currently involved in collaborative discussions with East Midlands Railway, Govia Thameslink Railway and Luton Airport, covering issues such as service branding, marketing and communications to promote rail travel to Luton Airport and take advantage of the introduction of the Luton Airport DART.
Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South and South Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to support the launch of a Luton Airport Express.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
Officials are currently involved in collaborative discussions with East Midlands Railway, Govia Thameslink Railway and Luton Airport, covering issues such as service branding, marketing and communications to promote rail travel to Luton Airport and take advantage of the introduction of the Luton Airport DART.
Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South and South Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department is having with the Department of Health and Social Care on the red list travel restriction-status of (a) Pakistan and (b) Bangladesh.
Answered by Robert Courts
The Department for Transport works closely with the Department for Health and Social Care and other government departments on matters related to international travel. Decisions on Red, Amber or Green List assignment and associated border measures are taken by Ministers, who take into account Joint Biosecurity Centre risk assessments of countries and territories, alongside wider public health factors.
These are intended to be temporary measures and the government keeps data for countries and territories under regular review.
Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South and South Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department plans to next review the covid-19 travel restrictions placed on (a) Pakistan and (b) Bangladesh.
Answered by Robert Courts
The government keeps data for countries and territories under regular review, and country allocations under the traffic light system are reviewed every three weeks, unless concerning evidence means we need to act faster to protect public health. The next review of country allocations will happen before 1 October 2021.