"We can certainly look into the response that the noble Lord has received. Obviously, we all know, sadly, that accidents happen on the railways, despite Great Britain having one of the safest railways in Europe. It is down to RAIB to identify what happened and issue recommendations that aim to …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"As I have clearly explained—I assume by his question that the noble Lord believes that we should describe it as a “backlog”—the complexity of these accidents and incidents undoubtedly means that they need to go through the process. The process was set up because previous accidents were not dealt with …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"My information tells me that only 11 remain overall. Of course, I say “only”, but that is still a number. Five of the recommendations that are open are the responsibility of the DfT, and three are in the process of being closed. Two are of a complex nature and are …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"My Lords, it is for the Rail Accident Investigation Branch and the Office of Rail and Road to monitor recommendations. We are aware of 117 outstanding recommendations of the more than 1,800 made since RAIB was formed. The vast majority of RAIB recommendations are closed within five years. However, some …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"My noble friend touches on a subject very dear to my heart. I find it quite extraordinary how we are prepared somehow to tolerate the excessive numbers of deaths and serious injuries on our roads. He makes an interesting proposition and I will endeavour to look into it on his …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"Interestingly, we can see the main causes of accidents highlighted in this. We know, for example, that level crossings are a critical point and that the weather is becoming an increasing risk. The work that has been done following different accidents when track workers have been injured and, unfortunately, sometimes …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"I will endeavour to write to the noble Baroness about the detail of that, but there is a particular focus on private land and how we can make sure that safety notices are put up and maintained. There is nothing worse than having a safety notice but with trees growing …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"I thank my noble friend for those comments. Throughout tragic incidents, we need to remember the roles of the people who work on the railways, supported by their trade unions. Their actions are nothing short of heroic in many cases. We need to pay tribute to them and to make …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"My understanding is that the reports are published and that it should be possible to look through them in great detail. Otherwise, what is the point? We need to learn from these tragic cases and make sure that, wherever possible, we bring in these recommendations and adhere to them to …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech
"I wonder if the noble Lord has forgotten how much money and revenue was lost during strike actions under the previous Government. We have to remember that the Secretary of State, when she came in, took swift action to deal with this, and I am pleased to say that the …..." Baroness Blake of Leeds - View Speech