Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to create conditions for the release of people persecuted in Russia for political reasons.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government condemns the continued deterioration in the Kremlin's dire domestic human rights record and will continue to call on the Russian government to comply with its international obligations. The Foreign Secretary and I have both been clear that the Russian authorities must release all political prisoners. The UK regularly uses multilateral fora, such as the UN and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), to highlight Russia's human rights violations and hold it accountable. On 10 April the UK called for the release of political prisoners in Russia at the OSCE alongside 14 other states and on 14 May the UK Human Rights Ambassador condemned the sentencing of an independent Russian election monitor, Grigory Melkonyants, to five years' imprisonment.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to support initiatives aimed at increasing cycling participation among women and girls.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department and Active Travel England (ATE) work with local authorities and other delivery partners to support active travel outreach programmes for underrepresented groups, including women and girls. This includes funding for Bikeability cycle training for children and outreach programmes to engage underrepresented groups through Cycling UK’s Big Bike Revival programme and local authorities.
In addition, ATE is working with local authorities across England to provide high-quality cycling infrastructure including as part of wider transport schemes. This includes providing lighting for walking and cycling schemes, improving social safety and delivering road safety improvements to existing schemes.
Responsibility for many aspects of transport in Scotland, including active travel, is devolved. My honourable friend the member for Edinburgh South West may wish to speak to the Scottish Government regarding steps taken to increase cycling participation among women and girls in Scotland.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking with the transport and logistics industry to identify where new energy infrastructure will be required to support the transition to electric vehicles in (a) commercial freight, (b) delivery and (c) other networks.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is introducing new strategic spatial planning processes, at national level (the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan) and regional level (Regional Energy Strategic Plans), to help ensure energy infrastructure meets future demand, including that of transport. The Government is encouraging transport stakeholders, such as the Freight Energy Forum (an expert advisory body led by the Department for Transport), to engage with the producer of these plans (the National Energy System Operator) and Ofgem to provide clarity and evidence on transport and electric vehicle requirements.