Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that UK nationals driving their UK-registered vehicles abroad are provided with necessary legal resources to challenge driving offence charges issued against them.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The information requested is not held.
All drivers should adhere to the local traffic laws, wherever they drive. There is information available to drivers about driving abroad on www.gov.uk.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many British names and addresses were handed over to the French authorities by the DVLA in 2018 in response to accusations of driving offences in France.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The number of sets of vehicle keeper data released by the DVLA following alleged motoring offences can be found in the table below. The DVLA first started receiving live requests for vehicle data from France in January 2019.
| France | EU (including France) | ||
Speeding Offences | Other Driving Offences | Speeding Offences | Other Driving Offences | |
2017 | - | - | 80,595 | 2,558 |
2018 | - | - | 237,172 | 22,906 |
2019 | 239,746 | 1,721 | 362,097 | 8,435 |
Between 2015 and 2017, 466 requests for information were received from outside of the EU for road traffic offences. Figures are not yet available for 2018.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many British citizens have been accused of (a) driving offences and (b) exceeding the speed limit when driving their UK-registered vehicle in (i) France, (ii) the European Union and (iii) the rest of the world in each of the last three years.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The number of sets of vehicle keeper data released by the DVLA following alleged motoring offences can be found in the table below. The DVLA first started receiving live requests for vehicle data from France in January 2019.
| France | EU (including France) | ||
Speeding Offences | Other Driving Offences | Speeding Offences | Other Driving Offences | |
2017 | - | - | 80,595 | 2,558 |
2018 | - | - | 237,172 | 22,906 |
2019 | 239,746 | 1,721 | 362,097 | 8,435 |
Between 2015 and 2017, 466 requests for information were received from outside of the EU for road traffic offences. Figures are not yet available for 2018.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support is available to UK nationals accused of (a) driving offences and (b) exceeding the speed limits when driving their UK-registered vehicles in (i) France, (ii) the European Union and (iii) the rest of the world.
Answered by Michael Ellis
All drivers should adhere to the local traffic laws, wherever they drive. EU countries are able to request vehicle keeper data from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) to prosecute British citizens for certain traffic offences under the Cross Border Enforcement Directive.
There is information available to drivers about driving abroad on www.gov.uk. Organisations such as RAC and AA also provide information on their websites.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to respond to Question 210578 on Cycling: Safety tabled on 21 January 2019 by the hon. Member for Southampton Itchen.
Answered by Jesse Norman
I apologise that due to an administrative error, this question was not answered. This has now been rectified.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps he has taken to increase the safety of people that use bicycles.
Answered by Jesse Norman
This Government is determined to make cycling and walking safer and easier, which is why the Department for Transport undertook a major cycling and walking safety review in 2018. The response to the review, which was published on 22 November and is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/governments-response-to-the-cycling-walking-investment-strategy-safety-review, included a detailed two-year action plan.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his policy is on supporting assistance dog owners in public transport spaces.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
Assistance dogs play a vital role in helping their owners to travel independently, confidently and in safety, and it is essential that they are granted access to public transport services.
Specific legislation and conditions of carriage protect assistance dog owners travelling on transport modes, by air, sea, and on land, and I urge authorities responsible for enforcing the rules to challenge discriminatory behaviour effectively.
The Government has committed in its Inclusive Transport Strategy to raising public and transport staff awareness of the rights and needs of disabled passengers, so that everyone, including those travelling with assistance dogs, can reach their destination easily, confidently and at no additional cost.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of refusals given to disabled passengers wishing to use private hire vehicles.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Disabled Persons’ Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) have a statutory duty to advise Ministers on the transport needs of disabled passengers, and we have discussed with them the challenges that disabled people face when using taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs).
Responsibility for enforcing the law on the carriage of wheelchair users and assistance dog owners rests with local licensing authorities however, and the Department does not collate data on service refusals.
Illegal discrimination against disabled passengers is entirely without justification and I urge authorities to take robust action against any taxi or PHV driver failing to fulfil their legal duty.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his department plans to take to offer disability training to private hire drivers.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
Taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs) provide a vital service for many disabled people. However, as of March 2018, only 38% of licensing authorities required drivers to complete disability awareness and equality training; I would urge the remainder to use their existing licensing powers to ensure that all taxi and PHV drivers have the knowledge and skills necessary to provide every passenger with the assistance they require.
Ministers are considering the recommendations made in the report of the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing, including those intended to improve accessibility. A Government response will be issued in due course.
Asked by: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2018 to Question 134899 on Motor Vehicles: Lighting, whether the review of the technical requirements been published.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) informal working group (IWG) on Visibility, Glare and Levelling has reported back to the Working Party on Lighting and Light Signalling. The documents and reports for these groups are publicly available on the UNECE website: http://www.unece.org/trans/main/welcwp29.html.
The IWG proposed to revise the headlamp aiming criteria for new vehicles but the working party did not consider their proposal to be sufficiently developed for inclusion in the regulations. As a result, it was decided that this work will continue as part of a broader review of vehicle lighting regulations.