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Written Question
Motor Vehicles: Insurance
Tuesday 30th January 2024

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of reports that insurance premiums for 17 to 20-year-olds have risen by more than £1,000 since last year.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport officials regularly liaise with representatives of the motor insurance industry on a variety of issues such as the cost of insurance and trends in the market.

It is the responsibility of individual motor insurers to set their premiums and the terms and conditions of their policies, and the Government does not intervene or seek to control the market.

The Government is determined that insurers should treat customers fairly and firms are required to do so under the Financial Conduct Authority rules.


Written Question
Motor Vehicles: Insurance
Tuesday 30th January 2024

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made on the potential impact of increased insurance premiums for young drivers on (a) affordability and (b) the increased risk of uninsured drivers.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport officials regularly liaise with representatives of the motor insurance industry on a variety of issues such as the cost of insurance and trends in the market.

It is the responsibility of individual motor insurers to set their premiums and the terms and conditions of their policies, and the Government does not intervene or seek to control the market.

The Government is determined that insurers should treat customers fairly and firms are required to do so under the Financial Conduct Authority rules.


Written Question
Motor Vehicles: Insurance
Tuesday 30th January 2024

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had discussions with car insurance providers on the potential impact of insurance premiums on the number of new drivers on the roads.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport officials regularly liaise with representatives of the motor insurance industry on a variety of issues such as the cost of insurance and trends in the market.

It is the responsibility of individual motor insurers to set their premiums and the terms and conditions of their policies, and the Government does not intervene or seek to control the market.

The Government is determined that insurers should treat customers fairly and firms are required to do so under the Financial Conduct Authority rules.


Written Question
Motor Vehicles: Insurance
Tuesday 30th January 2024

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of trends in car insurance prices in the last 12 months.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department for Transport officials regularly liaise with representatives of the motor insurance industry on a variety of issues such as the cost of insurance and trends in the market.

It is the responsibility of individual motor insurers to set their premiums and the terms and conditions of their policies, and the Government does not intervene or seek to control the market.

The Government is determined that insurers should treat customers fairly and firms are required to do so under the Financial Conduct Authority rules.


Written Question
Train Operating Companies: Subsidies
Thursday 25th January 2024

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much his Department provided in operating subsidies to each train operating company in each year since 2010.

Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The Office of Rail and Road publish data on franchise payments made to, or received from, operators on their Rail Industry Finance data portal. The portal can be accessed on their website. The tables which answer the question are:

  • Table 7273: Government subsidy by franchised passenger operator (up to 2018-19)
  • Table 7226: Franchised Passenger Train Operator Finances since 2015-16 by Franchise

Written Question
Great Western Railway: Electrification
Thursday 26th October 2023

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the initial cost estimate for the Great Western Rail Electrification Project was; and what was the (a) final cost and (b) total length of (i) rail electrified and (ii) rail left unelectrified (A) between Cardiff and Swansea, (B) on the Bath Spur and (C) on the Bristol Temple Meads Spur when removed from project scope.

Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The 2013 cost estimate for the electrification of the 121 miles of the Great Western Main Line between Heathrow Airport Junction and Cardiff was £1.7 billion. The work was completed in 2020 at a cost of £2.8 billion. The scope of the Great Western Electrification Programme was reduced in 2015 with the removal of the 45 miles between Cardiff and Swansea, the 30 miles between Chippenham and Bristol Temple Meads via Bath, and the five miles between Bristol Parkway and Bristol Temple Meads.


Written Question
Driverless Vehicles
Wednesday 10th May 2023

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what legal basis Tesla Autopilot is able to operate on roads in the UK.

Answered by Jesse Norman

In general, a vehicle must have been type-approved to be registered for use on roads in the UK when new. This is the process whereby a vehicle and its systems are confirmed as meeting the minimum regulatory requirements. Tesla’s Autopilot is a collection of driver assistance features which are covered by individual systems approvals for steering and brakes, the requirements for which have been developed at an international level under the UN’s World Forum for Harmonisation of Vehicle Regulations (WP.29). The issuing of these system approvals was not undertaken by the UK but they are mutually recognised under international obligations. The certificates for the system approvals formed part of the documentation that allowed the Vehicle Certification Agency to issue provisional GB type-approval certificates for Tesla vehicles, which enables them to be registered.


Written Question
Driverless Vehicles
Tuesday 9th May 2023

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of reports of phantom braking by Tesla vehicles when operated in autopilot mode.

Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

The Department has not identified any issues of phantom braking affecting the UK specification of Tesla vehicles when operating with their Autopilot feature. Therefore, the Department’s polices with respect to such technology remain unchanged.


Written Question
Driverless Vehicles
Tuesday 9th May 2023

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had with Tesla on its timescales for developing its autopilot software from beta to full self-driving.

Answered by Jesse Norman

Only vehicles listed under the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act 2018 are considered to be capable of safely driving themselves under certain circumstances, and are therefore able to be legally used without supervision on roads in Great Britain. There are currently no such vehicles listed.

Tesla’s Autopilot software is considered to fall under the category of being an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS), as it is not able to drive itself without any monitoring by an individual. The Department has not had any specific discussions with Tesla about their systems being considered for listing as self-driving.


Written Question
Driverless Vehicles
Wednesday 3rd May 2023

Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the approval process for licensing the use of Tesla Autopilot software.

Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

Tesla vehicles are approved currently under a GB provisional Type Approval issued by the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA). To obtain a Provisional GB type approval, manufacturers must provide VCA with a copy of the current and valid EU type approval certificates for the vehicle type that they wish to place on the market. Details of the provisional approval scheme can be found of the VCA website: https://www.vehicle-certification-agency.gov.uk/vehicle-type-approval/provisional-gb-type-approval-scheme/