Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential health effects, including for gene expression, for passengers and crew on commercial aircraft exposed to engine oil or engine oil decomposition products.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
In 2007, the independent Committee on Toxicity (COT) undertook a review of cabin air contamination, including by products such as engine oil and engine oil decomposition products. The COT concluded that the evidence available did not establish a link between cabin air contamination and ill health but made some recommendations for further research. This was further reviewed in 2013, 2022 and 2024, concluding it unlikely that the levels of chemical contaminants in the aircraft cabin air are unlikely to cause adverse health effects following acute or long-term exposures.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to qualify and expedite the introduction of the new turbine engine oil MIL-PRF-23699, developed by NYCO and approved by the Society of Automotive Engineers, for engines used in commercial aviation.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The process of qualifying or expediting the introduction of a new engine oil is the role of the engine manufacturers who work with engine oil manufacturers to develop specifications that provide the right combination of constituents to meet their environmental, emissions, performance, reliability and maintenance targets.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what expectation they have for train operating companies and ticket websites to provide information to passengers using mobility scooters about their use of a pass policy for the scooter, either when wheelchair seats or passenger support is booked.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Train and station operators are required by their operating licences to establish and comply with an Accessible Travel Policy (ATP) which must be approved by the Office of Rail and Road. An ATP sets out, among other things, the arrangements and assistance that an operator will provide to protect the interests of disabled people using its services and to facilitate such use.
The guidance states that operators must set out their policies regarding the carriage of mobility scooters and other mobility aids for mobility-impaired people on their trains. Operators must make the reasoning behind their policies clear, particularly with regard to any policy excluding the carriage of some or all mobility scooters and mobility aids.
We would expect all customers purchasing a ticket that require assistance to complete their journey to be directed to the Passenger Assist Scheme.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of pedelecs sold in England in the past five years, and what steps they are taking to ensure that users can meet insurance and MOT requirements.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Shadow Minister (Home Office)
The Department has made no such estimate. Pedelecs and other forms of e-cycle which do not comply with the Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycle regulations need to be registered, insured and taxed as a motor vehicle, and the rider will need an appropriate driving licence and will have to wear an approved motorcycle safety helmet. These are matters for the rider, and enforcement of the requirements is a matter for the police.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the distribution of electric vehicle charging points in rural areas, by (1) number per (a) area, or (b) village, (2) the number of villages that still lack any such facility, or (3) any other relevant metric.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Shadow Minister (Home Office)
Data on public electric vehicle charging devices in the UK, held by the Department for Transport, is sourced from the electric vehicle charging platform Zapmap. Charging devices not recorded on Zapmap are not included and the correct number of charging devices may be higher than recorded in these figures.
As of 1 October 2023, there were 3,316 public charging devices in a rural village and dispersed setting in England.
There were a further 2,676 charging devices in rural towns, with a total number of 5,992 charging devices in rural areas in England as of 1st October 2023.
No further assessment has been made.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment has been made of the natural capital destroyed so far by the construction of HS2, either by the Treasury Green Book guide or any other method.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
Environmental sustainability is integral to HS2’s design, with huge efforts being made to minimise the impact of construction on biodiversity, coupled with a commitment to deliver no net loss of biodiversity on Phase One. During the consultation stage, the environmental impacts of the railway are assessed and published in detailed Environmental Statements (ES), which are prepared in line with Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations.
As construction progresses, HS2 Ltd works to ensure that the significant effects reported in the ES are not exceeded through compliance with the “Environmental Minimum Requirements," a suite of documents which includes the Environmental Memorandum and the Code of Construction Practice. HS2 Ltd is also committed to publishing annual Environmental Sustainability Progress Reports and Ancient Woodland Reports to update the public on its impacts on the natural environment and on the important work being done to avoid, mitigate and compensate for any adverse effects.
All of the documents referred to above are available on the gov.uk website.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what monitoring is currently or planned to be carried out of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons emitted from road run-off; and what assessment has been made of this pollution, and particulate pollution, from electric vehicles.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
National Highways, in collaboration with the Environment Agency, have recently undertaken further in-situ monitoring of a range of chemical determinands, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, as part of its recent Phase 2 microplastic field monitoring programme on the strategic road network. The project was completed earlier this year (2023) and the report and findings will be published on National Highways’ website shortly.
The Department commissioned a 4-year research project in February 2021 to investigate the measurement techniques, materials properties and control parameters of brake and tyre wear emissions from road vehicles. The project will also assess differences in particulate emission from tyre and brake wear in electric vehicles compared to petrol/diesel vehicles.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what in situ monitoring is currently carried out on the microplastic emissions from roads.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
National Highways is conducting a research study to understand the level of microplastic pollution in road run-off from the strategic road network. In 2021, a Phase 1 literature review was completed and published on National Highway’s website. The Phase 1 study was used to inform a Microplastics Phase 2 field monitoring programme (2022-2023), which was commissioned and carried out in partnership with the Environment Agency. National Highways will shortly be publishing the findings from Phase 2. National Highways also plans to do more expansive monitoring of microplastics to build upon the Phase 2 work in 2024-2025.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the public health impacts of recycled carbon fuels through air pollution as compared to existing fuels and other alternative fuels such as those made from biomass.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
My Department has regular meetings with representatives from across the transport fuel sector where the government’s policy approach for recycled carbon fuel (RCF) is discussed. The policy on supporting and assessing RCFs has also been the subject of two public consultations, the first in spring 2021 followed by a second on detailed proposals last summer.
As set out in the July 2021 Government response to the consultation “Targeting Net Zero, next steps for the Renewable Transport Fuels”, RCFs supplied in transport will need to meet existing petrol and diesel fuel standards. This will ensure the air quality emissions standards of RCFs will not fall below those of the fossil fuels they replace. The Department understands that the direct use of RCF derived pyrolysis oils can increase air pollutants, but these fuels will not be supported under the proposals to support RCFs.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what meetings they have had with industry bodies about recycled carbon fuels.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
My Department has regular meetings with representatives from across the transport fuel sector where the government’s policy approach for recycled carbon fuel (RCF) is discussed. The policy on supporting and assessing RCFs has also been the subject of two public consultations, the first in spring 2021 followed by a second on detailed proposals last summer.
As set out in the July 2021 Government response to the consultation “Targeting Net Zero, next steps for the Renewable Transport Fuels”, RCFs supplied in transport will need to meet existing petrol and diesel fuel standards. This will ensure the air quality emissions standards of RCFs will not fall below those of the fossil fuels they replace. The Department understands that the direct use of RCF derived pyrolysis oils can increase air pollutants, but these fuels will not be supported under the proposals to support RCFs.