Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 25857 on Written Questions: Government Responses, and to the Answer of 24 October 2025 to Question 82741 on Transport: Finance, if she will provide a relevant hyperlink to the information.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Transport for City Regions settlements (TCR) allocations, published in June 2025, can be found at Transport for City Regions funding allocations - GOV.UK
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with National Highways on Post Opening Project Evaluation (POPE) reports; and what her planned timetable is for publication of existing unpublished POPE reports.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Post opening project evaluation (POPE) reports are detailed and complex evaluations and it is right that we take the time to fully assure findings. We are committed to transparency and will provide an update on publication in due course.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, in what circumstances she would extend track access rights for existing operators on the network.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Track Access Rights are managed independently by the Office of Rail and Road.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 September 2025 to Question 75870 on Parking: Pedestrian Areas, what the terms of reference are for the new research on pavement parking; what the budget is; and how the research contract will be awarded.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Terms of Reference are yet to be drafted, however, we have commissioned the design stage of a study to update and strengthen our evidence base on the extent and impact of pavement parking. The purpose of the research will be to understand not only where and how pavement parking occurs but how it affects people’s lives, and particularly the lives of vulnerable road users. This research will enable the Department to evaluate the impact of any future changes to pavement parking policies. The design stage has been awarded to Frontier Economics and SYSTRA under an existing call-off contract, with agreed framework rates (under Public Contracts Regulations 2015). The budget is still being agreed. Budget and commissioning routes for further stages of the study cannot be specified at this stage.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has made on implementing its plan to reduce driving test waiting times in the South East.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) fully acknowledges car practical driving test waiting times remain high and understands the impact this continues to have on learner drivers. The agency is intensifying its efforts to reduce waiting times and improve access to driving tests.
On the 12 November, the Secretary of State for Transport, updated the Transport Select Committee on the government’s ongoing response to high driving test waiting times. In the coming months, DVSA will:
DVSA is continuing with recruitment campaigns across the country, including in the Southeast to provide as many tests as possible. Since July last year, DVSA has recruited and trained 344 driving examiners (DE) who are now in post and delivering driving tests. A full-time DE can be expected to add approximately 1,200 tests per year to the booking system.
For test centres serving learner drivers in the Southeast, DVSA has recruited and trained 52 DEs who are now in post and delivering driving tests. There are currently 24 new entrant DEs undertaking training, 32 booked on a training course and DVSA has made offers to 26 new entrants.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many additional driving examiners have been recruited to test centres in the South East since May 2025.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) fully acknowledges car practical driving test waiting times remain high and understands the impact this continues to have on learner drivers. The agency is intensifying its efforts to reduce waiting times and improve access to driving tests.
On the 12 November, the Secretary of State for Transport, updated the Transport Select Committee on the government’s ongoing response to high driving test waiting times. In the coming months, DVSA will:
DVSA is continuing with recruitment campaigns across the country, including in the Southeast to provide as many tests as possible. Since July last year, DVSA has recruited and trained 344 driving examiners (DE) who are now in post and delivering driving tests. A full-time DE can be expected to add approximately 1,200 tests per year to the booking system.
For test centres serving learner drivers in the Southeast, DVSA has recruited and trained 52 DEs who are now in post and delivering driving tests. There are currently 24 new entrant DEs undertaking training, 32 booked on a training course and DVSA has made offers to 26 new entrants.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many vehicles (a) are taxed, (b) have Statutory Off Road Notifications, (c) are untaxed and (d) are undeclared as having Statutory Off Road Notifications by nation and region.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The information requested is shown in the table below. Please note the table includes vehicles for which there is a current registered keeper on record and where a postcode match was found:
England regions | Taxed vehicles | Vehicles for which a SORN has been made |
East Midlands | 3,230,522 | 520,712 |
East of England | 4,352,181 | 668,578 |
London | 3,008,654 | 429,872 |
North East | 1,509,315 | 207,761 |
North West | 4,503,390 | 549,655 |
South East | 6,883,503 | 826,967 |
South West | 4,353,614 | 641,457 |
West Midlands | 3,667,490 | 609,163 |
Yorkshire & The Humber | 3,335,460 | 479,448 |
Total for England | 34,844,129 | 4,933,613 |
| Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland |
Taxed vehicles | 2,086,861 | 3,218,548 | 1,306,521 |
Vehicles for which a SORN has been made | 410,187 | 505,357 | 357,610 |
The most recent information available shows that 98.7 per cent of vehicles across the UK were properly licensed. More detail can be found at the following link: gov.uk/government/statistics/vehicle-excise-duty-evasion-statistics-2023
Information is not available about vehicles which are being kept off the road but for which no SORN is in place.
Asked by: Jen Craft (Labour - Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps (a) her Department and (b) its public bodies are taking to (i) develop and (ii) use artificial intelligence approaches to British Sign Language.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Providing BSL translations of pre-recorded audio and video content on public services is a legislative Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AAA criterion. As outlined in the Government Service Standard, all digital government services must as a minimum meet Level AA. AAA is best practice.
Through the Service Standard and Service Assessments, the Government Digital Service encourages departments to incorporate BSL into service design. In May this year DVSA (Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency) launched the UK Government’s first British Sign Language (BSL) online translation service for candidates booking their theory test online. DVSA held a series of user research session with BSL users, with one participant calling the service ‘life-changing’.
There are opportunities to use AI to accelerate the creation of accessible content across public services. If public bodies trial the use of AI in approaches to BSL, they would be required to conform with both WCAG and the Service Standard, and must conduct research with disabled people, including Deaf users and where appropriate to the service provision, those who use sign language or a sign language interpreter to interact with the service.
Regardless of if AI generated, services must also make sure any BSL video is culturally appropriate by working with the BSL community, testing it, or getting feedback.
The Department for Transport is committed to creating accessible communications for British Sign Language (BSL) users, as set out in our British Sign Language 5-year plan.
The Department and its public bodies have not yet directly taken steps to develop or use artificial intelligence (AI) approaches to British Sign Language. However, as described in both our Transport AI Action Plan and our Science Innovation and Technology Plan, the Department has used its First of a Kind funding programme to supported innovative AI projects like Signapse Ltd’s mobile app that uses AI to turn timetable and station information into British Sign Language for deaf customers. There are now several examples in the public domain of this kind of application of AI for providing passenger information in BSL being used by train operators and other transport providers.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to tackle the sale of illegally modified e-bikes.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
E-bikes can only be legally used on the roads where they comply in full with the Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycle Regulations 1983.
The Product Regulation and Metrology Act received Royal Assent in July. One of the main aims of the Act is to prevent unsafe products, including illegally modified e-bikes, being made available to consumers by online marketplaces.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has a market surveillance unit and has the powers to act against retailers selling non-compliant e-bikes, including those that have been modified.
The police also have the powers to seize non-complaint e-bikes being used on the public roads.
Asked by: Blake Stephenson (Conservative - Mid Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to tackle the illegal usage of e-scooters.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Enforcement of illegal e-scooter use is a matter for the police and there are a range of motoring offences and penalties that can be used, such as criminal prosecution, points on the user’s driving licence, and having the e-scooter seized.
The Government has committed to pursuing legislative reform for micromobility vehicles, which will likely include e-scooters, when parliamentary time allows. This will help the police to crack down on those who use them in an unlawful or irresponsible way.