Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of including more language options for UK driving theory tests.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
There are no plans to reintroduce voiceovers, or interpreters, on theory and practical tests.
A consultation exercise on the level of foreign language support during theory and practical tests showed that over 70% of respondents supported removing voiceovers and interpreters on tests. The research showed that people were worried and concerned that if tests were conducted in languages other than English, then road safety may be impacted, and fraud may occur.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the PCS union on ensuring that DVLA staff have a covid-secure working environment.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Discussions between the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) about staff safety in relation to Covid-19 began before the initial lockdown was announced and have been ongoing throughout. The Department for Transport has also been involved in those discussions where appropriate.
Staff safety remains an absolute priority for the department and the DVLA and all appropriate measures have been put in place.
The PCS has made clear that our proposals are acceptable in terms of addressing their staff safety concerns.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timescales are for implementing the recommendations of the Global Travel Taskforce, published on 24 November 2020.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
From its inception the Global Travel Taskforce was a time-limited body, and it has now concluded its work.
However, the Government is working closely and at pace with industry and our international partners to implement the taskforce recommendations and ensure a safe and sustainable return to international travel as quickly as possible.
The taskforce recommendations addressed three priorities: implementing effective public health measures; encouraging safe growth in demand; and driving a co-ordinated response with global partners.
As a first step, on 15 December the Government introduced the ‘Test to Release for International Travel’ scheme in England, allowing arrivals to pay for a privately provided Covid-19 test and reduce their required period of self-isolation if the test is negative.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the Global Travel Taskforce next plans to convene to discuss the outstanding recommendations from its report, published on 24 November 2020.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
From its inception the Global Travel Taskforce was a time-limited body, and it has now concluded its work.
However, the Government is working closely and at pace with industry and our international partners to implement the taskforce recommendations and ensure a safe and sustainable return to international travel as quickly as possible.
The taskforce recommendations addressed three priorities: implementing effective public health measures; encouraging safe growth in demand; and driving a co-ordinated response with global partners.
As a first step, on 15 December the Government introduced the ‘Test to Release for International Travel’ scheme in England, allowing arrivals to pay for a privately provided Covid-19 test and reduce their required period of self-isolation if the test is negative.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which commercial aviation routes are being prioritised as part of the Government's plans to support the restart of the aviation sector in response to the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Government recognises the challenging times facing the aviation sector?as a result of?COVID-19 and is committed to tackling this virus while enabling a sustainable and responsible return to travel.
Commercial air transport routes are a matter for airlines, and therefore decisions on how soon to operate a route after a period of inactivity is a matter for those airlines.
Since 10 July under the Travel Corridor policy, passengers arriving from a number of countries and territories are no longer required to self-isolate on arrival unless they have visited or transited through a non-exempt country or territory. Ministerial decisions on Travel Corridors are informed by risk assessments provided by the Joint Biosecurity Centre, working closely with Public Health England, using a methodology endorsed by the 4 Chief Medical Officers of the UK.
As a further measure in support of international travel, the Test to Release scheme was launched on 15 December. This provides passengers arriving in England with the option to shorten the self-isolation period by up to half following a negative COVID-19 test.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the Government’s Global Travel Taskforce plans publish its findings on the effect and challenges posed by covid-19 to international travel.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Government is actively working on the practicalities of using testing to release people from self-isolation earlier than 14 days. The Global Travel Taskforce is working at pace to consider how testing, technology and innovation can drive a recovery for international travel and tourism, without adding to infection risk or infringing on our overall NHS test capacity.
The taskforce will report to the Prime Minister no later than November, setting out recommendations for how the UK can support the recovery of international travel. I will update the House on its conclusions and outputs shortly.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the aerospace sector since August 2020 on aerospace and aviation restart and recovery.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Government is working closely with the UK’s aerospace industry, including at sector level through the Aerospace Growth Partnership, to help retain jobs and return the sector to growth as soon as possible.
The Global Travel Taskforce has also undertaken extensive engagement with the transport industry, international partners, the tourism sector, business leaders, and the private testing sector and invited submissions from all of these partners on its work. The Taskforce has received contributions from a wide range of partners, including the aerospace industry, and is due to report its recommendations to the Prime Minister in November.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to implement a covid-19 testing system (a) to enable international travel to and from the UK by the end of the November 2020 covid-19 lockdown (b) that would remove the need for a 14-day quarantine for travellers returning from international destinations.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Government is actively working on the practicalities of using testing to release people from self-isolation earlier than 14 days. The Global Travel Taskforce is working at pace to consider how testing, technology and innovation can drive a recovery for international travel and tourism, without adding to infection risk or infringing on our overall NHS test capacity.
The taskforce will report to the Prime Minister no later than November, setting out recommendations for how the UK can support the recovery of international travel. I will update the House on its conclusions and outputs shortly.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how long the Global Travel Taskforce is planned to be in operation.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Government is actively working on the practicalities of using testing to release people from self-isolation earlier than 14 days. The Global Travel Taskforce is working at pace to consider how testing, technology and innovation can drive a recovery for international travel and tourism, without adding to infection risk or infringing on our overall NHS test capacity.
The taskforce will report to the Prime Minister no later than November, setting out recommendations for how the UK can support the recovery of international travel. I will update the House on its conclusions and outputs shortly.
Asked by: Angela Crawley (Scottish National Party - Lanark and Hamilton East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which commercial aviation routes are planned to be prioritised when a covid-19 testing infrastructure is introduced by the Government.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Government is actively working on the practicalities of using testing to release people from self-isolation earlier than 14 days. The Global Travel Taskforce is working at pace to consider how testing, technology and innovation can drive a recovery for international travel and tourism, without adding to infection risk or infringing on our overall NHS test capacity.
The taskforce will report to the Prime Minister no later than November, setting out recommendations for how the UK can support the recovery of international travel. I will update the House on its conclusions and outputs shortly.