Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure good practice by agents working for HS2's property acquisition team.
Answered by Huw Merriman
The Department expects any agent contracted to HS2 Ltd to maintain high professional standards. As members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), HS2 Ltd’s suppliers must adhere to the RICS rules of conduct and any RICS professional statements relevant to the advice they provide. HS2 Ltd continuously monitors supplier performance through regular case review meetings and supplier relationship management meetings.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to publish a response to the noise camera trials carried out by his Department between October 2022 and February 2023.
Answered by Guy Opperman
Roadside trials of noise camera technology commenced on 18 October 2022 and finished on 1 February 2023. As set out in the Government’s recent Plan for Drivers, the Department intends to publish the findings of the trial shortly and issue guidance to local authorities setting out minimum requirements and best practice for the use of noise cameras.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's consultation on Pavement parking: options for change, which closed on 22 November 2020, when he plans to publish his Department's response to the consultation.
Answered by Guy Opperman
Pavement parking is a complex issue. We want to take the right step for communities and ensure that local authorities have appropriate and effective tools at their disposal. We are working through the options and the possible legislative opportunities for delivering them and as soon as those matters are certain we will publish our formal response.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the conclusion of the Independent Complaints Assessors on the impact of his Department's policy on personalised number plates in their Annual Report 2020-21, published on 25 December 2021, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of amending the Retention and Sale of Registration Marks Regulations 2015 to allow more flexibility for customers wishing to retain personalised licence plates.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
The law allows customers to purchase the right to display a personalised registration number on their vehicle and requires the right to that registration number to be renewed before it expires. Entitlement to registration numbers under this scheme lasts for ten years. Reminders are sent to customers in advance of expiry. If an application is not made to extend the entitlement, the right to display the personalised registration number is lost. There are no plans to change the current legal requirements in this area.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that there is adequate monitoring and oversight of the construction of HS2.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Department for Transport monitors the construction of HS2 through formal mechanisms such as the HS2 Development Agreement, and a number of supporting forums which assess whether HS2 is being delivered to budget and schedule, and in accordance with the commitments which accompany both HS2 Acts.
The Department also deploys a team of independent Construction Inspectors to provide independent scrutiny of construction, as well as its impact on communities and residents.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2022 to Question 143851 on Transport for London: Finance, if he will make representations to the Mayor of London on the need to protect and preserve TfL services to towns outside of Greater London during his April 2022 review of demand and service levels.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Transport in London is devolved, and therefore it is for the Mayor to make decisions on service levels that support the goal of being financially sustainable by April 2023, while continuing to provide reliable services for passengers both within and outside of Greater London.
Since the start of the pandemic, the Government has provided TfL with close to £5bn in support.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of the level of investment from individuals appearing on the UK sanctions list in companies contracted by (a) HS2 Ltd and (b) other infrastructure projects for which his Department is responsible.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
Our latest assessment indicates that only one sanctioned individual has connections to my Department’s infrastructure projects through involvement with an HS2 contractor. The HS2 contractor has suspended any dividend payments from going to the sanctioned individual.