Cycling: Bells

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Tuesday 27th April 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

I very much hope that they are not on their mobile phone in their car; otherwise, I shall have words. The noble Lord makes some incredibly important points. It is a question of making sure that the balance is right between the actions of the motorist and the actions of the cyclist. I think I have been able to set out what the Government are doing. We are focused on ensuring that the right balance is achieved and we need to make sure that motorists as well as cyclists behave in the way that they should.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the second Oral Question.

Rail Freight: Channel Tunnel

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Wednesday 24th February 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

The noble Lord is right to say that there are things that we can do; indeed, we are doing them. Network Rail is working with the freight operating companies on timetabling to ensure that we can prioritise freight, in particular in these times of lower passenger numbers. Of course, passengers will come back to the trains one day and we need to make sure that whatever solution we put in place now is for the longer term. However, I reassure the noble Lord that we will leave no stone unturned and that we greatly welcome his input in these matters.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked, and we now move to the next Question.

Airports National Policy Statement

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Monday 18th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

As my noble friend is aware, the Government are keeping airline passenger duty under review. We are aware that it has significant negative impacts, particularly on domestic flights, and we will consult in due course.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been covered, and we now move to the third Oral Question.

P&O Ferries

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Tuesday 5th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

The Government did not do nothing; they had conversations with P&O, which operates many ferry routes in the UK. It reached its decision based on the factors I have set out. However, when we were at the height of the pandemic for the first time round, the Government supported this route to see whether it could be viable in the long term, funding it to the tune of £1,272,000. Despite this funding, it has become clear that the medium-term viability of this route is simply not there.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

I call the noble Lord, Lord Loomba. Lord Loomba? No? I call the noble Lord, Lord Wallace of Saltaire.

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[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

The noble Viscount will know that the maritime sector is an extremely well-developed and highly competitive private sector. The Government work very closely with it; we endeavour to intervene when there are problems, but on the whole we do not. For example, we worked very closely with the ports recently when there was a 15% increase in year-on-year container capacity. That is now beginning to resolve itself. Furthermore, we also provided £200 million in one-off grants to support ports through the port infrastructure fund. There are things we can do, but in general the maritime sector remains a private sector.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.

Freight Industry: Delays

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Thursday 17th December 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

I am not aware that the Government have done an assessment of that, because, of course, this is not a UK domestic problem but a global issue that is happening at the moment. What would normally happen is that the peak shipping time would be in October; what has happened this time is that it has extended well beyond October and is basically unprecedented. However, as I said to other noble Lords, we are working very closely with hauliers to improve container collection and working very closely with ports to make sure that there is sufficient capacity. A number of large container ships are changing their port of destination at quite short notice, so therefore there is a huge amount to be done. It is being done by private companies—it is a private sector—but the Government absolutely stand by, ready to help.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.

National Bus Strategy

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Wednesday 16th December 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

Local authorities can already fine statutory undertakes up to £10,000 if they overrun. We have no evidence that emergency works are causing undue delay. In any event, a local authority can define how long such works should have to take. In certain circumstances, the works can be plated or there can be a temporary repair and they can return to make the permanent repair in due course.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the second Oral Question.

Belfast International Airport

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Wednesday 2nd December 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

My Lords, I have outlined the support that Belfast International Airport and various airports in Northern Ireland have already had, but I can give a little more detail. For example, the business rates relief which was offered by the Northern Ireland Executive totalled £2.2 million, of which Belfast International Airport received the lion’s share, at £1.7 million. The City of Derry Airport received £1.23 million from the NIE, but the reason behind that is that it is owned by the council, and local authority airports cannot access the same support as private airports, such as CBILS, the CJRS and so on.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the second Oral Question.

Covid-19: Transport Industry

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Tuesday 6th October 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

The noble Lord will know that the Government published their Maritime 2050 strategy a little while back. Of course, our commitment to decarbonisation remains extremely strong. There are a number of conversations going on at the moment about maritime decarbonisation, and some ideas have been put forward for the spending review.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we now move on to the second Oral Question.

Covid-19: Aviation Sector

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Monday 5th October 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

My Lords, in conjunction with my department, the CAA has issued a number of regulatory exemptions to help support pilots through the Covid-19 period. These exemptions provide an extension to the standard validity period of licences and ratings, but subject to some conditions. Alongside this, of course, we are looking at the recovery phase for the sector and are doing a lot of work in this area. One of the workstreams for the recovery phase is skills and workforce, and we will bear in mind what my noble friend had to say.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

I now call the noble and right reverend Lord, Lord Eames. Lord Eames? Lord Eames, for the third time? I think I will move on, in the interests of time. I call the noble Lord, Lord Rosser.

[Lord Rosser (Lab)]

Key asks from the airline industry are the implementation of testing for passengers arriving from high-risk destinations—not least New York—greater transparency on the Government’s methodology for determining travel corridors and restrictions, a temporary 12-month waiver of APD and the regionalisation of travel corridors, as I am sure the Minister knows. How many of those do the Government intend to agree to?

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

First, I wish the noble Lord a happy birthday. The Government are taking all those key asks that he refers to extremely seriously. As he will know, very early in the process—in May—we set up the aviation restart and recovery expert steering group, which gave us an enormous insight into the amount of support and the sorts of things we could do for aviation. That has now moved on to become a recovery-only sort of group, looking at longer-term policy thinking, including regional connectivity, economic growth, skills and workforce and decarbonisation. We are well aware of all the issues that he raises, and we are working with the industry to do what we can.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

I now call the noble Lord, Lord McNally. There is no Lord McNally, so I call the noble Baroness, Lady Tonge.

[Baroness Tonge (Non-Afl) [V]]

My Lords, the Minister will perhaps know that the only good thing to have come out of the Covid-19 pandemic is a welcome reduction in air traffic noise and air pollution around Heathrow Airport. Can she assure us that, whatever the outcome of the appeal by Heathrow to the Supreme Court, if work is ever resumed on a third runway the original air pollution, noise and traffic conditions will still apply?

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

I am very pleased that my noble friend is doing his part to keep the aviation industry afloat. The passenger locator form is a requirement for every person arriving in this country. On 9 September, the Prime Minister announced that there were plans to simplify, shorten and streamline the whole process. Border Force does spot checks on arrival to make sure that people have filled out the passenger locator form, and they are liable for fines if they have not.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed; all supplementary questions have been asked.

Holidays: Cancellations

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Wednesday 30th September 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

The issue for consumers is that different bookings using different travel agents will be supported by different mechanisms, so there cannot be a one-size-fits-all solution. However, there are a number of places that consumers can go to for advice. For example, back in April, the Competition and Markets Authority put out guidance on cancellations and refunds. It was also clear that the airlines had to state clearly in what timeframes those refunds would be provided.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we now move to the next Question.

Electric Vehicles

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Thursday 10th September 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

The Government are very aware of the impact of electric vehicles on both overall and peak demand for electricity. We are looking at increasing the amount of smart charging in off-peak periods. For example, we have consulted on ensuring that all new private charge points have smart charging in order to help in flattening demand from peak periods. We will have legislation on that next year. I would also like to reassure the noble Lord that we have invested £30 million in looking at vehicle-to-grid technology, which is another way of using the battery in the car as an electricity storage mechanism. I thank the noble Lord for his question and assure him that energy generation is top of mind.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for the Question has elapsed, and that brings Question Time to an end.

Highway Layouts

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Monday 7th September 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con)]

My Lords, this Government have a huge respect for electric vehicles. Certainly, the numbers the noble Baroness quotes are low and are historic, because the number of electric vehicles is increasing, and we expect it to increase in the future. However, while we are transitioning to electric vehicles, Highways England is doing a huge amount of work on air quality. For example, in late September, Highways England will introduce 60 miles per hour speed limits on certain sections of the strategic road network, in order to bring down speeds and improve air quality.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked, and we now move to the next Question.

Covid-19: Walking and Cycling

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Monday 8th June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton [V]]

This comes down to the actions that can be taken by local authorities. We have provided the guidance that they need to follow. What they put in place within their own areas will be key to reducing localised congestion. That might include speed restrictions, as previously mentioned; traffic light cycles can be changed; there can be car-limited areas; and there could be changes to parking charges.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has now elapsed. We move to the third Oral Question, in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Andrews.

Covid-19: Public Transport

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Tuesday 2nd June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton]

That requirement is not buried in the detail as the noble Lord has said—it is on the face of the funding agreement reached between the Government and TfL. Both parties agreed to all the items within that document. We asked TfL to come up with operational plans such that we can temporarily remove free travel for under-18s. No other part of the rest of the country has free travel for under-18s; given that this £1.6 billion is being funded from general taxation, it strikes me that it is not fair for the rest of the country to pay for free travel for the under-18s at this time. Given the need to get people off public transport, on to their bikes and walking, it also strikes me that younger people can be at the forefront of that change.

[The Lord Speaker]

My Lords, I regret to say that the time allowed for this Question has now elapsed.

Aviation and Tourism: Cancellations

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Tuesday 5th May 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton]

The noble Lord reiterates points that have been made previously. I can only reassure him that we are working with the airlines to understand the challenges they face in order to get the money back to consumers. There are unprecedented challenges at this time, but we also recognise that customers should get their money back and in a timely fashion.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has now elapsed. I thank noble Lords. That concludes the Virtual Proceeding on Oral Questions. Virtual Proceedings will resume at 2 pm for the Private Notice Question. Proceedings are now adjourned. Thank you very much indeed.

Passenger Train Services

Debate between Baroness Vere of Norbiton and Lord Fowler

Wednesday 29th April 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Vere of Norbiton]

The department was in close contact with TfL. Certainly, the reductions that it made had some consequences for overcrowding. Since then, we know that TfL has made significant changes to the morning service. It has applied station control measures and is working much more closely with the British Transport Police to make sure that overcrowding does not occur. We remain in close contact with TfL and, as importantly, as we restart the system, these issues will once again come to the fore.

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, I regret that the time allowed for this Question has now elapsed. I apologise that the noble Earl, Lord Clancarty, could not ask his supplementary question. We move now to the second Oral Question.