Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department is making on introducing national minimum standards for taxi and private hire vehicles.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The Government has taken action to support taxi and private hire vehicle licensing authorities in England to use their existing powers to set consistent licensing standards. The Government published the Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards in 2020, statutory guidance, which focus on safeguarding standards to protect children and vulnerable adults, although the measures benefit all passengers. On 17 November 2023 the Government issued updated Best Practice Guidance, following consultation, which seeks to drive consistency on licensing issues outside of the scope of the statutory guidance and maintaining high standards of safety and accessibility.
The Government remains committed to legislating for national minimum standards when Parliamentary time allows. The guidance already issued would be a natural starting point when setting future legislation.
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Future Mobility Zones Fund.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Department has made no assessment of the effectiveness of the Future Mobility Zones Fund. An external evaluation of Future Transport Zones (as the zones were renamed) has been commissioned and is still in progress.
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department plans to renew e-scooter trials beyond May 2024.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
No decision has been made on renewing the e-scooter trials beyond May 2024.
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with (a) local authority leaders and (b) the Mayor of West Yorkshire on the Network North plans for the Leeds mass transit system to provide better connections to Wakefield.
Answered by Huw Merriman
Since publication of the Network North paper, DfT ministers have spoken to a range of local MPs and local leaders, including the Mayor of West Yorkshire. This includes during a visit by the Secretary of State and Rail Minister to Bradford on 5th October. We will continue to engage closely with partners and local leaders as delivery plans are defined to ensure that projects deliver the services that people need and want.
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he held discussions with potential private funders on the HS2 Euston tunnel and terminus prior to the publication of the Network North plans.
Answered by Huw Merriman
DfT and HS2 Ltd have consulted and commissioned studies on private finance and have regular discussions with potential private funders. We continually review the best ways to deliver and fund our major infrastructure projects, including harnessing the private sector to finance and deliver projects where appropriate. Following the Network North announcement ministers here and at HM Treasury have had a series of roundtables with investors and the supply chain to talk about opportunities including Euston.
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the time it will take to deliver private finance for the (a) tunnel and (b) terminus for Euston HS2.
Answered by Huw Merriman
The Network North paper published by the Department for Transport on 4 October 2023 sets out that we will appoint a development company, separate from HS2 Ltd, to manage the delivery of this project. We will also take on the lessons of success stories such as Battersea Power Station and Nine Elms, which secured £9 billion of private sector investment and thousands of homes. So we will harness the future growth that the station will unleash to support its development, to ensure we get the best possible value for the British taxpayer - and ensure that funding is underpinned by contributions from those people and businesses its development supports.
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle high levels of bus and coach driver vacancies in England.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
Whilst it is the responsibility of the sector to recruit and retain drivers, the Department for Transport regularly engages with industry to understand issues in recruiting and retaining bus and coach drivers, and how Government can help. Latest intelligence from the sector suggests that the shortage has reduced over the course of this year.
The Department for Transport and Confederation of Passenger Transport co-chaired a Bus and Coach Summit in November 2022. The summit brought together experts from industry, national and local government to look at issues facing driver recruitment and retention to bus and coach operators, and identified ideas and actions to help address these. Many of these are owned by industry, who as aforementioned, are responsible for recruiting drivers.
We are also ensuring there is sufficient access to Passenger Carrying Vehicle (PCV) practical driving tests, whether through the bus and coach industry’s network of delegated examiners, or directly through Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency test centres.
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of zero emission buses funded through the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas scheme have been allocated per local transport authority, and per manufacturer.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
The following table presents information on the number of zero emission buses funded through the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) scheme by local transport authority. The numbers in this table are not official statistics: they are based on the latest information available and are therefore indicative and subject to change. Where available, information has been provided on the status of the buses and the name of the bus manufacturer has been included.
Local Transport Authority | Number of buses funded | Number of buses ordered | Bus manufacturer |
Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority | 30 | 30 | Volvo |
Kent County Council | 33 | 5 | 5 buses manufactured by Volvo. 28 - Irizar |
Leicester City Council | 116 | 116 | 110 – Wrightbus |
Warrington Borough Council | 105 | 105 | Volvo |
South Yorkshire Combined Authority | 27 | 27 | 4 – Alexander Dennis Ltd |
Norfolk County Council | 70 | 70 | Wrightbus |
North Yorkshire County Council | 39 | 39 | 20 – EvoBus/Mercedes 19 – Alexander Dennis Ltd |
Portsmouth City Council & Hampshire County Council | 62 | 62 | Wrightbus |
Blackpool Council | 90 | 0 | Bus manufacturer subject to outcome of procurement process by local transport authority or bus operator. |
Nottingham City Council | 68 | 24 | 24 - Pelican/Yutong |
Greater Manchester Combined Authority | 170 | 170 | Volvo |
Hertfordshire County Council* | 27 | 0 | Bus manufacturer for remaining buses subject to outcome of procurement process by local transport authority or bus operator. |
West Midlands Combined Authority | 124 | 0 | Bus manufacturer subject to outcome of procurement process by local transport authority or bus operator. |
City of York Council | 53 | 53 | Wrightbus |
West Yorkshire Combined Authority | 136 | 72 | 57 – Wrightbus |
Oxfordshire County Council | 159 | 159 | 104 - Wrightbus |
| 1,309 | 932 |
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2023 to Question 193239 on Buses: Exhaust Emissions, whether the 4,233 zero-emission buses include buses which were (a) funded or (b) delivered before February 2020.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
None of the zero-emission buses outlined in my answer of the 13 July were funded, ordered or delivered prior to February 2020.
Asked by: Simon Lightwood (Labour (Co-op) - Wakefield and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many zero emission buses had been allocated Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas funding as of 23 October 2023; and how many of these buses (a) have been ordered and (b) are on the road as of that date.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
Since February 2020, an estimated 4,200 ZEBs have been funded across the UK.
The first round of the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) scheme provided £270m funding to 16 local transport authorities in England outside London. The scheme will fund up to 1,309 zero emission buses, though this is subject to change as projects are progressed by local transport authorities. The second round of the scheme was launched in September, with £129m funding to be provided to schemes by March 2024.