Air Travel: Disabled Passengers
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(11 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Baroness Ludford (LD)
My Lords, I too thank my noble friend Lady Brinton for providing the opportunity for this important debate. Noble Lords will forgive me if I occasionally have to look over my shoulder; the only timer in the room is over there.
My experience of provision for people with disabilities when travelling is at one remove: my late husband, Steve Hitchins, had a leg amputated in 2015 to save his life from sepsis and, after a few months in a loaned wheelchair while the wound healed, was fitted with a prosthetic leg. This was heavy and unwieldy, given especially that the amputation was above the knee, so he could not walk very far and needed wheelchair assistance when travelling by air or train to get to or from the gate or platform. I learned a great deal about access problems in the four years before he died—of unrelated causes—in 2019. I came to the conclusion that provision for the protected characteristic of disability is not only 20 years behind that of other protected characteristics under the Equality Act but is flavoured too often with patronising pity rather than simple efficiency.
In the period that Steve used a wheelchair, he once found himself stranded inside the courtyard of Somerset House. It was the anxiety about how on earth he would get out, as much the inconvenience, that was so distressing. We took only a couple of flights, but my recollection is of quite a lot of toing and froing at the airport to check that the promised wheelchair assistance would materialise and anxiety as to whether it would appear in time. The problem is often the outsourcing of the service and lack of seamless communication. Because he was not taking his own wheelchair, Steve did not have the issues referred to by my noble friend and the noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson.
The helpful Lords Library briefing tells us that, in their December 2018 consultation on the future of aviation, the Government noted that 70% of passengers who had requested assistance when flying in the previous 12 months were
“happy with the service provided”.
That is fine, but it means that 30%—almost one in three—were not. There seem to have been lots more consultation exercises and responses from both the Civil Aviation Authority and the Government than actual delivery of improvements.
In June last year, the CAA said that significant service failings were “unacceptable”. It warned airlines that they could face enforcement action regarding their legal obligations. What enforcement is actually happening? Perhaps the Minister can tell us. In June this year, the Government said it would seek to
“legislate when parliamentary time allows”—
in the time-honoured phrase—on enforcement powers of the CAA. We have learned in this House not to hold our breath regarding such promises. Can the Minister give us a date for such legislation? What is happening in the meantime on enforcement?
Many passengers—including, as we have heard, colleagues in this House—have been left stranded on planes without their wheelchairs being returned to them or with wheelchairs and other mobility aids lost or damaged, and the ensuing fight for compensation. The noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson, has spoken about poor experiences and said that disabled people are
“routinely … told they are not allowed to fly on their own because of health and safety”.
To anyone who is, for instance, single or widowed, or for any reason whatever is travelling alone, for business or pleasure, this is a massive and patronising inconvenience.
The noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson, had a documentary on the BBC World Service last night, entitled “Tanni’s Lifetime Road to Disabled Equality”, about how not only in the UK but worldwide countries are still struggling with providing proper access for people with disabilities. One thing she highlighted—not about travel—was that 40% of the disabled people who lived in Grenfell Tower died in that fire. She campaigns on evacuation provision. As she said, the BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner, whose being stranded on a plane waiting for the return of his wheelchair hit the headlines, complained on the noble Baroness’s programme about being treated as an “invalid” or “special person” instead of a service user like any other with particular needs. He wants common-sense practice, not “policy”, to guide service.
My main experience with my husband was of train travel, so I will say something about that, if I may—I think my noble friend Lady Brinton is permissive on this score. Provision for him was pretty hit and miss, with lots of pre-booking and checking up necessary. It arrived, more often than not, though often with a delay or with it needing to be chased by phone, but a majority of times is not good enough. I do not know if the situation has improved these days, with apps, but being stranded on trains is reported regularly. People’s needs differ. I recall one hairy occasion at St Pancras when, getting off a Thameslink train, the only offer was a ramp, but that was of no use to Steve, by then on his legs. He could step down but the big gap between train and platform without well-placed grab rails was nerve-wracking. By the way, Steve found the grab rails in the new electric taxis not to be very convenient, but they are great otherwise.
In the programme I just cited, the noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson, reminded us that step-free access to trains, once promised for January 2020, has been put back to—unless I misheard—2070. Can this possibly be true? Even if there is level boarding from platform to train, there remains the problem of reaching the platform. Disgracefully, it was proposed at one point that seven stations on the Elizabeth line would be denied disabled access for cost-cutting reasons. This was reversed after an outcry but, of all the things to cut, what a telling reaction it was that slashing disabled access was top of the list.
Lifts at stations are very often out of action, sometimes with a casual apology notice stuck on. I wonder if Network Rail and the train companies understand the devastation that can be caused by a broken lift. It means either a horrible struggle up the stairs with great difficulty, maybe with a suitcase, or simply being unable to travel. Breakdowns need fixing in a maximum of hours, not days—let alone weeks.
My worst experience with my late husband was on our last holiday abroad, in May 2019, to Amsterdam on a direct Eurostar train. It was ruined, despite Eurostar’s promise in its website’s “special assistance” section that:
“If you’re travelling with a disability or reduced mobility, free special assistance is there to help you get to and from the train. At many of our stations, you’ll be helped by our Eurostar Assist team; at some of our stations, you’ll be helped by the local team. Although some local teams provide a slightly different service, we work closely with them to make sure everything goes smoothly”.
When he arranged the service, my husband was not told that the Amsterdam station’s “slightly different service” meant no loan wheelchair to meet him off the train, such as was provided at St Pancras to get on it. It provided a ramp only to passengers travelling in their own wheelchairs. Eurostar later claimed that we should somehow have known that
“free special assistance … to help you get to and from the train”
did not include a wheelchair loan at Amsterdam, as it did at St Pancras, since we were reliant on a Dutch railway service. I pointed out that our contract was with Eurostar, not NS, the Dutch railways.
The train manager on the Brussels-Amsterdam section of the outward trip came to find us to say, “I know you are registered for assistance but there is in fact no wheelchair loan at Amsterdam”. He clearly understood that we would not know about that and would be hearing it for the first time. We had been allocated seats in the end carriage of the outward train, which I had not thought was a problem, given that we were going to get a wheelchair to the door of the train. When we did not, my husband had the longest possible walk to the lift, which was a physical challenge for him with his prosthetic leg and distressing for me to observe. Even the memory of it distresses me. This was anything but the promised smooth experience.
I will spare you the details of the ruined weekend, with me making phone calls all over the shop to Eurostar and, when the company told me to, to SNCB, Thalys and goodness knows what—even though it was Eurostar’s responsibility. I have recounted this tale at some length for the snapshot it gives of not only poor service and lack of communication but poor co-ordination between providers, disingenuous explanations and attempts to wriggle out of responsibility. That is common to all modes of travel. I expect the Government and/or regulators to stop all this.
I am sorry; I have gone on. The fact is that we have an ageing society where the demand for assistance from those with either disability or reduced mobility can only grow, so the urgent need is for all those access and assistance promises to finally be fulfilled.
E-scooters
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(2 years, 9 months ago)
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Baroness Ludford (LD)
The Minister mentioned earlier that she could not give any data for police enforcement of offences. But, as my noble friend Lady Randerson said, Department for Transport statistics for the year to June 2021, collected from police forces, show that there were nearly 900 accidents, with three people killed and 253 seriously injured. If her department can get accident statistics from the police, why can it not get statistics on enforcement and offences? Is it because her department is not encouraging the police to do any enforcement?
Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
No. Enforcement is going on: offenders are being fined and penalties are being given out. The reality is that the Home Office does not collect the data by the specific vehicle type that is an e-scooter.
Highway Code
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(2 years, 9 months ago)
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Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
There has been a huge amount of coverage of the new Highway Code, for which we are extremely grateful, and there will continue to be coverage. But I am afraid there has been an awful lot of hot air as well, because the changes are actually not that significant. If, as a pedestrian, you start to cross the road, you already have priority; there has been no change in that regard. There was already guidance as to where cyclists should ride on the road; we are just clarifying what is reasonable and what is not. I am content that there is an awful lot of coverage at the moment. There will be more paid-for coverage by the department when we launch our campaign.
Baroness Ludford (LD)
My Lords, it is reported that the Government are considering, as a so-called Brexit freedom, refusing to implement EU standards on better sight lines for buses and lorries so that they do not crush cyclists and pedestrians, and better braking for cars. Did taking back control mean more dangerous roads and less safe vehicles? This seems in direct contravention to the alleged purpose of the changes in the Highway Code.
Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
I am grateful to the noble Baroness for raising that matter. I think what she is talking about—although I suspect there are a few things muddled up there—is the EU safety package. Of course, that has not yet been mandated in the EU. Ministers are considering what we will do, and we will make the right decision for the safety of everybody on British roads. It has got nothing to do with Brexit or otherwise, frankly; we will be deciding for ourselves.
Cycling: Bells
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(3 years, 6 months ago)
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Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
I thank my noble friend for his questions and congratulate him on his running. The Government take an interest in how pedicabs will be regulated, and we will look favourably on any Bills that might come forward. I think I have answered the question about mandating cycle bells, but we have just closed a consultation on the Highway Code. We want to ensure that those who can cause the greatest harm have the greatest responsibility to reduce danger or threat. In those circumstances, a cyclist would have the responsibility to a pedestrian or a runner to ensure that they were safe and did not feel intimidated.
Baroness Ludford (LD) [V]
My Lords, arguably e-scooters pose an even greater threat than cycles. The Government’s policy seems to be to normalise these by stealth. About 300,000 have been sold for illegal private use, and on sites such as Amazon or eBay you can find them with a top speed of 50 mph, marketed as “great for commuting” despite it being illegal to ride them on public roads, let alone pavements. There is no enforcement whatever. They are almost silent, such that pedestrians, especially those with vision impairment, are hugely at risk. What are the Government doing to protect pedestrians, especially vulnerable ones, from e-scooters?
Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
I refer the noble Baroness to the answers to the Question on e-scooters that I answered last week for more context on that. It is illegal to ride a privately owned e-scooter on a public road, and where there are e-scooter trials, all the e-scooters within those trials are fitted with a bell or a horn.
Hauliers
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(3 years, 8 months ago)
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Baroness Ludford (LD)
My Lords, the guidance to hauliers on the government website about the trade and co-operation agreement requirements amounts to 37 pages—some little light reading.
Ian Wright, CEO of the Food and Drink Federation, told the Commons Committee on the Future Relationship with the EU that
“we now have to treat every different bit of a consignment and every different product with the same approach that we might have previously done to whole lorryloads … we are going to see the re-engineering of almost all … supply chains over the next six to nine months.”
The difficulties of Brexit red tape result from the choice made by this Government for a very hard Brexit. By prioritising sovereignty over market access, they were determined to leave the single market and customs union. The only real hope is to change that situation in the years ahead. Now there is a unilateral move by the Government to change the provisions of the Northern Ireland protocol. This foolish and regrettably confrontational move has surely prejudiced hopes for negotiated easements of the protocol or the TCA, unless the Minister can assure me that that is not the case.
Transport for London: Financial Settlement
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(3 years, 8 months ago)
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Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
Had the noble Lord given me fair warning of that question, I would have been delighted to answer it for the Chamber. However, I will discuss very briefly the amount of funding that the Government have been able to support for Crossrail. Back in August 2020 the board of Crossrail said that it would need another £1.1 billion, which was probably about the P70 budget. The Government have announced £825 million so that the GLA can borrow further funds to get Crossrail over the line and open to passengers.
Baroness Ludford (LD) [V]
My Lords, the Government commissioned a report into TfL’s finances from KPMG in June 2020. They said at the time that this was to understand TfL’s needs. The Government are now refusing to publish this report despite businesses and politicians urging them to. The suspicion is that they are playing political games. When will they end this secrecy so that Londoners get the transparency that they deserve?
Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
The noble Baroness is right that the Government did commission that report. It extends to many hundreds of pages, and contains a huge amount of commercial information which we would not want to see in the public domain, as it would not be beneficial to the future of TfL. But the report did give us a firm understanding of where TfL is at the current time. It should be remembered that, even before the pandemic, TfL had a deficit in 2018-19 of £494 million. Combined with that KPMG report and the financial sustainability plan that we have received from TfL, we are in a much better place to help the Mayor of London get TfL back on its feet, and the Government are ready to support that.
Heathrow Airport Expansion
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(3 years, 10 months ago)
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Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
The Government are considering the court’s judgment carefully, but I remind the noble Lord that Heathrow expansion is a project owned by Heathrow Airport Ltd and it is for the company to decide on its next steps. However, I take the more general point that aviation has a very significant role to play in our future and I welcome the steps that it is taking to reduce its carbon emissions.
Baroness Ludford (LD) [V]
[Inaudible.]—air pollution was a cause of Ella Kissi-Debrah’s death. I congratulate her mother on her great persistence. The levels of air pollution in her area continuously exceeded the legal limits in the three years preceding her death. The inquest found that the state had failed to act against this air pollution to bring it into line with the legal limits imposed in both EU and domestic law. Are the Government seriously going to risk the lives of other children by breaching the law even more and allowing Heathrow Airport to expand?
Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)
My Lords, as I have already stated, any expansion at Heathrow must meet strict criteria on air quality.
Covid-19: Public Transport
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(4 years, 4 months ago)
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Baroness Vere of Norbiton [V]
The Government are working very closely with transport operators in all modes to encourage them to do their own risk assessments, work out a safe configuration of passengers and make other interventions, such as cleaning and ventilation, so that passengers are carried as safely as possible.
Baroness Ludford (LD) [V]
My Lords, organisations concerned for pedestrians are very worried about e-scooters. The RNIB has called them
“a real and genuine threat to the ability of blind and partially sighted people to move around independently and safely.”
This is even more true if they use pavements, as they will; they already have done while they have been illegal. Unlike now, will there be robust enforcement? What arrangements are in place with police and local authorities to that end?
Baroness Vere of Norbiton [V]
The noble Baroness will know that we are introducing trials of e-scooters, which will give us more data. Appropriate enforcement will be in place.
Brexit: No-deal Ferry Contracts
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(5 years, 6 months ago)
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Baroness Vere of Norbiton
I thank my noble friend for that question. Yes, we can be absolutely sure. Perhaps I may address the point about Seaborne, as it seems to be the elephant in the room. Not a single taxpayer pound was paid to Seaborne. The management of Seaborne perhaps made some very serious errors, but the biggest thing that happened was that its credible partner and backer, Arklow Shipping, pulled out of the deal.
Baroness Ludford (LD)
My Lords, is it not the fact that this was not insurance for the taxpayer but a political gesture by the Conservative Party and Prime Minister—which was demonstrated by the fact that the Prime Minister has told MPs this afternoon that when she made her “no deal is better than a bad deal” statement in the Lancaster House speech in 2017, it was “in the abstract”? She has now disowned it, which shows that it was never a real issue but was just political grandstanding.
Baroness Vere of Norbiton
No deal remains the legal default. I remind the noble Baroness that had no deal happened—obviously, we hope that it does not in future, either—there would have been a significant constriction of flows of trade across the short straits between Dover and France to perhaps 12% to 13% of what is currently is. That is why we had to take out these contracts. The contracts were to other ports; they made sure that important class 1 goods—medicines and things that noble Lords would find to be extremely important and beneficial to our citizens—would get through.
Aviation
Baroness Ludford Excerpts(7 years, 4 months ago)
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Lord Callanan
I take my noble friend’s concerns on board. Many airlines want access to the south-east of England. As we proceed with Brexit, aviation will be a critical component of our engagement with the rest of the world. More people will need to visit this country; more people will need to travel abroad for a new UK sector. Of course, the expansion of Heathrow, if it proceeds, will provide extra slots and we will look at the context of slots at regional airports in the aviation strategy.
Baroness Ludford (LD)
My Lords, can the Minister tell us whether Zac Goldsmith will resign his seat if the expansion of Heathrow goes ahead?
Lord Callanan
I am sure the noble Baroness will want to ask Zac Goldsmith himself that question.