Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has sought any written assurances from representatives of Seabourne Freight's (a) bank, (b) legal representatives and (c) accountants on that company’s ability to comply with its contract with the Government.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
Yes. Written assurances were sought from a number of representatives as part of the contractual arrangements.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what (a) infrastructure and (b) dredging work is required at the Port of Ramsgate to enable the operation of ferry services contracted by his Department; and what (a) private and (b) public institutions will fund those works.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
Maintenance dredging is currently in progress. Additionally, limited works are needed to restore the readiness of the port for regular ro-ro services, including appropriate Border Force facilities. Seaborne and my Department are working closely with Thanet Council to ensure that the Port will be ready to accept new services.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has confirmed as part of due diligence checks whether Seaborne Freight became VAT registered.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
All companies operating out of the UK are required to comply with relevant VAT legislation.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to approve an operating manual covering the safety standards of ships to be used by Seaborne Freight for cross-channel ferries; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
Seaborne Freight will be required to comply with the same stringent International Maritime Organization safety standards that are applied to all vessels. In the UK these are enforced by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has sought advice from Baltic Exchange or any other shipping brokers in relation to the capacity of Seaborne Freight to run a cross-channel ferry service.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
The Department was supported by advice from a number of external advisers.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what payments from the public purse are due to Seaborne Freight under the contract issued by his Department for provision of ferry services between Ramsgate and Ostend (a) in advance of ferry services being provided and (b) in the event of the company being unable to fulfil the contract.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
No payments are due either in advance of ferry services being provided or in the event of the Company being unable to fulfil the contract.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will list the third party organisations that undertook due diligence on Seaborne Freight in advance of his Department’s awarding of a contract to that company for ferry services.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
The third party organisations who provided external advice were Deloitte UK, Slaughter & May and Mott MacDonald.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether it is his working assumption that Seaborne Freight will use ships for its proposed cross-channel ferry operation operating under the UK flag.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
This is a commercial decision for any vessel operator, including Seaborne Freight.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has received any written assurances from Thanet District Council or Kent County Council that they have completed any due diligence checks on Seaborne Freight.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
The contract to provide additional ferry capacity is between the Government and Seaborne Freight and therefore Government has carried out necessary due diligence.