Asked by: Vince Cable (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2019 to Question 208748 on Department for Transport: Brexit, how much of the £101 million allocated to his Department for Brexit preparations in 2018-19 and 2019-20 has been allocated to preparing for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by Lord Grayling
HM Treasury has allocated over £4.2 billion of additional funding to departments and the Devolved Administrations for EU exit preparations so far. This breaks down as:
This funding is in addition to my department’s efforts to reprioritise from business as usual toward preparations for the UK’s departure from the EU.
Of the funding allocated from HM Treasury for the financial years 2018-19 and 2019-20, my Department has currently allocated £36.4m to prepare specifically for a no deal. As we further our preparations for EU Exit, we may allocate additional resources for no deal contingencies.
Asked by: Vince Cable (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the (a) funding allocated by his Department for preparations for the UK leaving the EU without a deal and (b) proportion of that funding which has been allocated by ministerial direction; and for what functions that funding has been allocated.
Answered by Lord Grayling
The funding provided by HMT is in addition to my department’s efforts to reprioritise from business as usual toward preparations for the UK’s departure from the EU. We are required to achieve value for money as part of receiving these additional funds, in line with the guidance set out in Managing Public Money. My Department spent a total of £6.6m between 2016/17 and 2017/18 preparing for all EU Exit scenarios. We were allocated up to £76.8m for EU Exit preparations in this financial year for all scenarios and £15.8m of this funding has been spent so far.
Bernadette Kelly, the accounting officer for the Department for Transport, sought a written ministerial direction on 7th February 2018 for expenditure on EU Exit preparations. The details can be found here
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/eu-exit-preparations-dft-ministerial-direction. This covered activity related to the Haulage Permits and Trailer Registration Bill in advance of the relevant supporting legislation receiving Royal Assent. The Bill subsequently received Royal Assent on 19th July 2018 and is now an Act of Parliament.
Asked by: Vince Cable (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received from the travel industry on aviation safety in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
Answered by Lord Grayling
Ministers regularly meet with representatives from the aviation industry to discuss the implications of EU exit on aviation, including safety, and to ensure their requirements are factored into preparations.
We are confident of agreeing our future partnership with the EU, including on aviation, but we have a duty to plan for the alternative. The Department’s aviation technical notices and the EU’s published plans for aviation contingency preparations, updated with proposed EU regulations on 19 December, clearly demonstrate that, in the unlikely event of no deal, both sides are committed to maintaining connectivity.
In addition, the Government has introduced legislation to ensure that the UK exits the EU with maximum certainty and continuity - the European Union (Withdrawal) Act will convert EU law as it stands at the moment of exit into domestic law, meaning that the same rules and laws will apply on the day after exit as on the day before.
This means that after exit the same safety rules will continue to apply. The UK is committed to maintaining current levels of safety and will continue to strive to improve on these after leaving the EU. Being outside the EU will not change the UK’s approach to aviation safety.
The SI, the draft Air Passenger Rights and Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018, that was laid before Parliament in draft on 28 November, makes the changes needed to ensure that retained EU legislation on air passenger rights continues to function correctly under any scenario. This will help to provide continuity and certainty to industry and consumers.
Asked by: Vince Cable (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what contingency plans his Department has considered for compensating (a) tour operators, (b) airlines and (c) UK travellers for consequential losses in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by Lord Grayling
Ministers regularly meet with representatives from the aviation industry to discuss the implications of EU exit on aviation, including safety, and to ensure their requirements are factored into preparations.
We are confident of agreeing our future partnership with the EU, including on aviation, but we have a duty to plan for the alternative. The Department’s aviation technical notices and the EU’s published plans for aviation contingency preparations, updated with proposed EU regulations on 19 December, clearly demonstrate that, in the unlikely event of no deal, both sides are committed to maintaining connectivity.
In addition, the Government has introduced legislation to ensure that the UK exits the EU with maximum certainty and continuity - the European Union (Withdrawal) Act will convert EU law as it stands at the moment of exit into domestic law, meaning that the same rules and laws will apply on the day after exit as on the day before.
This means that after exit the same safety rules will continue to apply. The UK is committed to maintaining current levels of safety and will continue to strive to improve on these after leaving the EU. Being outside the EU will not change the UK’s approach to aviation safety.
The SI, the draft Air Passenger Rights and Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018, that was laid before Parliament in draft on 28 November, makes the changes needed to ensure that retained EU legislation on air passenger rights continues to function correctly under any scenario. This will help to provide continuity and certainty to industry and consumers.
Asked by: Vince Cable (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of whether the air quality changes arising from expansion at Heathrow Airport will require the National Policy Statement to be revised.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Department for Transport has assessed the effects of the Government’s 2017 UK Plan for Tackling Roadside Nitrogen Dioxide Concentrations, and updated aviation demand forecasts, on the Heathrow Northwest Runway scheme’s compliance with air quality limit values.
This analysis has informed the Government’s view that the Heathrow Northwest Runway scheme can be delivered in compliance with air quality obligations, with a suitable package of policy and mitigation measures.
The Department has not seen any further evidence to date which leads the Government to review its position. Following the designation of the Airports National Policy Statement (NPS), it is now down to an applicant for development consent to undertake a detailed assessment of the air quality effects of the scheme, including during construction, and to put forward to the Planning Inspectorate an appropriate package of mitigations that address air quality effects and demonstrate compliance with air quality obligations.
In order to grant development consent, the Secretary of State would need to be satisfied that, with mitigation, the scheme would be compliant with legal obligations.