Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have for future years to ensure train operators provide services on Boxing Day.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Department requires its operators to plan services and rail timetables that are designed to meet expected passenger demand. These should be resilient and provide value for money for the taxpayer.
Typically, demand for services on Boxing Day is low and much of the network is closed to provide opportunity for essential maintenance. We expect operators and in future, Great British Railways, to continue to consider the case for Boxing Day services where there is demand and they do not further increase the burden on taxpayers.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of state subsidies in the production of (1) e-bikes, and (2) bicycles, made by (a) EU nations, (b) North American nations, (c) China, and (d) the rest of the world.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Trade Remedies Authority is the UK’s independent investigatory body that exists to defend the UK against unfair international trade practices, including assessing harm from subsidies. Where UK economic interests are being damaged by such unfair practices, action will be taken. The UK has in place an anti-subsidy and an anti-dumping measure on e-bikes from China, and one anti-dumping measure on bikes/bike parts from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Tunisia. The Trade Remedies Authority is currently reviewing all three measures.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of jobs in the UK in (1) the bicycle manufacturing industry, (2) the e-bike manufacturing industry, and (3) the supply chains of the bicycle and e-bike manufacturing industries.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon lady’s Parliamentary Question of 11th December is attached.
The Baroness Pidgeon MBE
House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW
17 December 2024
Dear Lady Pidgeon,
As National Statistician and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority, I am responding to your Parliamentary Question, asking what assessment has been made of the number of jobs in (1) the bicycle manufacturing industry, (2) the e-bike manufacturing industry, and (3) the supply chains of the bicycle and e-bike manufacturing industries (HL3406).
The estimated number of employees in Great Britain working in the manufacture of bicycles and invalid carriages in 2023 was 2,700, according to the latest available data from the Business Register and Employment Survey1.
The latest UK Standard Industrial Classification of Economic Activities 20072 does not have a unique classification for the manufacture of e-bikes, therefore we are unable to provide an estimate of jobs for this industry.
The supply chain of the bicycle and e-bike manufacturing industries could include a large number of different industrial classifications. We do not hold information on which industries are part of these supply chains and therefore are unable to provide an estimate for the number of jobs in the UK for supply chain industries.
Yours sincerely,
Professor Sir Ian Diamond
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the safety of e-bike batteries and conversion kits for sale in the UK produced in (1) the UK, (2) the EU, (3) North America, (4) China, and (5) the rest of the world.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Our product safety laws require that all consumer products placed on the UK market, including e-bike batteries and conversion kits, must comply with legal safety requirements, regardless of their origin.
The Office for Product Safety and Standards works to detect and prevent unsafe or non-compliant goods entering the UK at ports and borders, alongside Local Authority Trading Standards and other Government partners. Information on products that present risks are published on gov.uk, including country of origin where known.
OPSS has commissioned technical research into lithium-ion battery safety to strengthen Government’s evidence base on the safety of these products.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many investigations have been launched by the Office for Product Safety and Standards into manufacturers of batteries used in (1) e-bikes, and (2) e-scooters, in each of the last five years; and where the batteries used by those manufacturers were produced.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Office for Product Safety and Standards is leading a programme of action to tackle the causes of fires in e-bikes and e-scooters. This includes targeted regulatory action, working with Local Authority Trading Standards at ports and borders, to identify non-compliant businesses and prevent unsafe products entering the market.
OPSS has published 21 product recalls and 28 product safety reports covering regulators’ interventions on e-bikes and e-scooters, lithium-ion batteries and chargers, since 2022.
OPSS’ enforcement actions are published on gov.uk quarterly. Information on products that present risks are published on the Product Recalls and Alerts site on gov.uk.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take to ensure that the proposed financial transparency measures and profit cap for children's home providers effectively address profiteering across the sector, particularly among smaller providers; what assessment they have made of the number of smaller providers which may not fall under the definition of 'key placement providers'; and what steps they intend to take in response.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
Every child in care should have a safe and loving home which is also value for money for the taxpayer.
In their 2022 report, the Competition and Markets Authority estimated that the operating profit margins for large children’s social care providers between 2016 and 2020 were 22.6% for children’s homes, 19.4% for Independent Fostering Agencies and 35.5% for supported accommodation.
The department is clear that profiteering from vulnerable children in care is absolutely unacceptable and the department is committed to stamping out profiteering where it occurs in the children’s social care placement market.
On 18 November 2024, the department published its policy paper ‘Keeping children safe, helping families thrive’, setting out ambitious reforms across children’s social care. As part of these, the department is taking forward a package of measures, including through legislation, to rebalance the children’s social care placement market, covering children’s homes, independent fostering agencies and supported accommodation. These measures will improve competition, regulation and commissioning of placements and bring greater visibility to the prices local authorities are paying and the profits providers are making. If the department does not see a reduction in profiteering, the department will not hesitate to take action to cap providers’ profits.
The department will bring forward legislation when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of profiteering among private agencies, particularly those operating as private equity-owned children’s homes; and whether their proposed financial transparency measures will be sufficient in view of the complex financial structures often used by such organisations.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
Every child in care should have a safe and loving home which is also value for money for the taxpayer.
In their 2022 report, the Competition and Markets Authority estimated that the operating profit margins for large children’s social care providers between 2016 and 2020 were 22.6% for children’s homes, 19.4% for Independent Fostering Agencies and 35.5% for supported accommodation.
The department is clear that profiteering from vulnerable children in care is absolutely unacceptable and the department is committed to stamping out profiteering where it occurs in the children’s social care placement market.
On 18 November 2024, the department published its policy paper ‘Keeping children safe, helping families thrive’, setting out ambitious reforms across children’s social care. As part of these, the department is taking forward a package of measures, including through legislation, to rebalance the children’s social care placement market, covering children’s homes, independent fostering agencies and supported accommodation. These measures will improve competition, regulation and commissioning of placements and bring greater visibility to the prices local authorities are paying and the profits providers are making. If the department does not see a reduction in profiteering, the department will not hesitate to take action to cap providers’ profits.
The department will bring forward legislation when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the report by the Competition and Markets Authority Children's social care market study, published in March 2022, what steps they are taking to address profit-making within independent fostering agencies alongside their plans to crack down on profit-making providers of children’s homes.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
Every child in care should have a safe and loving home which is also value for money for the taxpayer.
In their 2022 report, the Competition and Markets Authority estimated that the operating profit margins for large children’s social care providers between 2016 and 2020 were 22.6% for children’s homes, 19.4% for Independent Fostering Agencies and 35.5% for supported accommodation.
The department is clear that profiteering from vulnerable children in care is absolutely unacceptable and the department is committed to stamping out profiteering where it occurs in the children’s social care placement market.
On 18 November 2024, the department published its policy paper ‘Keeping children safe, helping families thrive’, setting out ambitious reforms across children’s social care. As part of these, the department is taking forward a package of measures, including through legislation, to rebalance the children’s social care placement market, covering children’s homes, independent fostering agencies and supported accommodation. These measures will improve competition, regulation and commissioning of placements and bring greater visibility to the prices local authorities are paying and the profits providers are making. If the department does not see a reduction in profiteering, the department will not hesitate to take action to cap providers’ profits.
The department will bring forward legislation when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to provide a long-term funding settlement for Transport for London to enable investment in infrastructure.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Department will continue to work with Transport for London (TfL) with the aim to place it on a long-term financially sustainable footing as part of Phase 2 of the Spending Review. The Government remains committed to supporting London and the transport network on which it depends and continues to regularly engage with TfL to understand its investment plans.
Asked by: Baroness Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to introduce a new road safety plan; and if so, what is their timescale for doing so.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
This Government takes road safety seriously, and we are committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads. My Department is developing our road safety strategy and will set out more details in due course.