Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which 10 local authorities have received the most money for the National Cycle Network; and how much has been spent by all local authorities over the last five years on improving this network
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Over the last five years, the Government has awarded Sustrans £77 million in grant funding to improve the safety and accessibility of the National Cycle Network (NCN). As custodians of the Network, Sustrans works with local authorities and other partners such as the Canal and River Trust to identify priorities for investment in the NCN, and channels funding to partners to deliver these upgrades. The table below lists the 10 local authority areas which have received, or are forecast to receive, the greatest level of investment in NCN routes from the overall £77 million.
| Local Authority Area | Total value of projects |
1 | Warwickshire County Council | £5,676,163.00 |
2 | West Midlands Combined Authority | £3,151,051.97 |
3 | South Yorkshire Combined Authority | £2,677,552.00 |
4 | The West of England Combined Authority | £2,215,047.82 |
6 | Buckinghamshire Council | £2,084,000.00 |
7 | Durham County Council | £2,000,181.50 |
8 | Staffordshire County Council, | £1,677,215.94 |
9 | Derbyshire County Council | £1,650,680.00 |
10 | Dorset County Council | £1,520,811.00 |
Over and above the funding provided to Sustrans, the Government has also provided local authorities with significant amounts of capital funding to support active travel. It is for authorities to determine how best to use this in their areas, including whether or not to spend any of it to improve routes which include stretches of the NCN, and the Department does not therefore hold an aggregate figure for total spend on the NCN over this period.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many of the 200 sections of the English road network scheduled for improvement for cyclists in 2017 have been completed; and what is the schedule for future investment.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
National Highways is committed to supporting active travel and making the Strategic Road Network (SRN), comprising our motorways and principal A-Roads, accessible and safer for cyclists, by delivering 200 new cycling facilities and improved crossing points between 2016 and 2021. A total number of 160 cycling schemes and 438 new or upgraded crossings for cyclists, pedestrians and/or horse-riders (211 new and 227 upgraded) have been delivered up to March 2020.
Whilst not targeted in the second Road Investment Strategy (RIS2) (2020 to 2025), National Highways is committed to improving the SRN’s impact on cyclists, walkers and other vulnerable users. Designated Funds form a part of National Highways’ contribution to this, through the Walkers Cyclists and Horse riders’ theme within its User and Community fund.
Through Designated Funds, National Highways is providing new infrastructure for road users, and enhancing existing facilities, through targeted local investment. National Highways has invested £45.3 million since April 2020 and has a further £24 million of approved projects for delivery.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to establish a cross-departmental body to ensure improved co-ordination between all departmental providers of (1) sport, (2) health, and (3) wellbeing initiatives; and whether the Department for Health and Social Care intends to lead this initiative.
Answered by Lord Kamall
The Government is currently refreshing the School Sport and Activity Action Plan and developing a new cross-government sport strategy. Government Departments are collaborating to embed evidence-based approaches to address inactivity and support health. This includes enabling national and local action to create increase physical activity, supporting health and addressing inequalities. Options for coordination across these strategies are currently being considered by the Departments involved.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Health Promotion Taskforce has had its first meeting; and if so, (1) who chaired it, (2) what items were on the agenda, and (3) what decisions were made.
Answered by Lord Kamall
The Heath Promotion Taskforce is a Cabinet Committee. It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its Committees and how often they have met, is not shared publicly.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure maximum use of (1) government, and (2) school, sports facilities to provide access for (a) local clubs, and (b) the general public, during evenings, weekends and the school holidays.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We have announced £30 million for PE teacher training and to open up school facilities to provide access to the wider community. At the recent Spending Review, we announced £205 million to build or transform up to 8,000 state-of-the-art community football pitches and multi-use sports facilities across the UK. This was in addition to a £30 million package to renovate park tennis courts across the country.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the absence of a “no fault” tariff in the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme disadvantages the level of payment made under the Scheme in contrast to negligence cases for personal injury; and whether they have considered this in determining future pay-outs from the scheme.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) is a no-fault scheme and is therefore different from awards for damages paid through the courts. If an individual believes they have been injured as a result of negligence, having an AFCS award does not prevent them from bringing a claim through the common law damages route, although an AFCS award would be taken into account in the damages payment (or vice versa). This is in keeping with the longstanding principle that an individual should not be compensated twice for the same injury.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) works closely with the NHS to ensure smooth transition in medical care when leaving service. In the majority of cases, the NHS are able to meet the need for successful rehabilitation. In cases where more specialist support is needed, bespoke MOD funding packages may be available.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the level of the current cap on pay-outs from the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme compared to that for civilian claims, in cases where the NHS could meet all the medical rehabilitation needs, and (2) whether all medical rehabilitation needs under the Scheme can be met by the NHS.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) is a no-fault scheme and is therefore different from awards for damages paid through the courts. If an individual believes they have been injured as a result of negligence, having an AFCS award does not prevent them from bringing a claim through the common law damages route, although an AFCS award would be taken into account in the damages payment (or vice versa). This is in keeping with the longstanding principle that an individual should not be compensated twice for the same injury.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) works closely with the NHS to ensure smooth transition in medical care when leaving service. In the majority of cases, the NHS are able to meet the need for successful rehabilitation. In cases where more specialist support is needed, bespoke MOD funding packages may be available.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of whether future income prospects are adequately covered when claims under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme are considered.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
Where an individual has a lasting injury received as a result of service which has an ongoing impact on the amount they are able to earn over their lifetime in terms of both salary and pension, financial security is provided through a lifelong, tax-free, inflation-proof, income known as a Guaranteed Income Payment (GIP).
The GIP calculation takes account of both salary and age in determining the lifelong loss of earnings the individual is likely to face, both salary and pension, as a result of their service-caused injury or injuries. It also includes an enhancement for lost future military promotions. This calculation enables the Department to provide a payment that not only recognises final salary but also loss of future potential earnings.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect to implement an online application to enhance customer experience and reduce processing times for applications for pay-outs from the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
An online Armed Forces Compensation and War Pension Scheme application service has been developed and is currently being tested in a beta phase. The service will be presented for a Government Digital Service (GDS) assessment on 31 March 2022 when the GDS will assess the quality, suitability and security of the service. During this assessment further opportunities to improve the service may be identified, prompting a further phase of improvements before a second assessment - likely to be scheduled for early summer 2022.
Launch of the service to the public will follow attainment of a successful Beta assessment.
Asked by: Lord Moynihan (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made on the £40 million transformation programme to digitise existing paper-based processes and to create a single customer portal for the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Transformation Programme to digitise existing paper based processes and create a single customer portal for Veterans is underway. This complex and detailed programme is being managed by contractors in collaboration with Defence Business Services and the Discovery phase for the three schemes (Armed Forces Pension Scheme, Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and War Pensions Scheme) is nearing completion. The programme aims to introduce automation, processing improvements and significantly reduce paper holdings. The first release of the new system is expected in late 2023. This will underpin the customer portal, which is being developed concurrently. This will enable members to provide and retrieve information electronically and allow them to securely access details of their entitlement and payments.