Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to enforce vehicle noise limits.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government takes the impact of excessive noise on health, wellbeing and the natural environment seriously. Strict vehicle noise regulations are harmonised at an international level and require vehicles to demonstrate compliance before being placed on the UK market.
Once on the market, the Market Surveillance Unit (MSU) within the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) ensures new vehicles and components in the UK comply with legislative requirements, including on noise.
The MSU is currently conducting surveillance to check the fit and supply of vehicle components relating to noise, and aftermarket motorcycle silencers available for sale. In 2023-24, two companies were successfully prosecuted for the fit and supply of defective components relating to noise. Further work in this area is ongoing and will be reported on the MSU’s website.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, What assessment she has made of the potential impact of bicycle theft and violent robbery on the level of cycling and active travel.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Fear of having a bike stolen can be a serious deterrent to those who might want to take up cycling.
Active Travel England is providing funding for local authorities to introduce secure cycle parking. In addition, the British Transport Police are tackling cycle theft at rail stations by both uniformed patrols and use of plain clothes officers at hotspot locations.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support her Department provides to local authorities to improve secure cycle parking and crime prevention infrastructure.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
On 10 December 2025, my Department announced that local authorities will receive £626 million for active travel between 2026/27 and 2029/30. This funding can be used to support any form of active travel scheme, including secure cycle parking.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits, feasibility and cost to commercial airlines of regulations mandating the installation of enhanced air filtration systems or the use of alternative engine oils designed to reduce the risk of cabin air contamination.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The UK has a well-established regulatory requirement for reporting events that could endanger aircraft outlined in UK Reg (EU) No 376/2014. Fume and smoke events must be reported and are subsequently analysed by specialists working in the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to inform policy.
The scientific literature on toxicology of fume events is under continuous review by colleagues working in the CAA’s Medical Department. The CAA position statement on Cabin Air Quality can be found at this webpage. This includes a detailed overview of the research that has been undertaken on the topic and the conclusions of a recent study commissioned by my department and undertaken by the Committee on Toxicity (COT). This found that levels of the chemical contaminants reviewed in aircraft cabin air are unlikely to cause adverse health effects following acute or long-term exposures.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to require the installation of real-time cabin air quality monitoring sensors on commercial aircraft operating in the UK.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The UK has a well-established regulatory requirement for reporting events that could endanger aircraft outlined in UK Reg (EU) No 376/2014. Fume and smoke events must be reported and are subsequently analysed by specialists working in the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to inform policy.
The scientific literature on toxicology of fume events is under continuous review by colleagues working in the CAA’s Medical Department. The CAA position statement on Cabin Air Quality can be found at this webpage. This includes a detailed overview of the research that has been undertaken on the topic and the conclusions of a recent study commissioned by my department and undertaken by the Committee on Toxicity (COT). This found that levels of the chemical contaminants reviewed in aircraft cabin air are unlikely to cause adverse health effects following acute or long-term exposures.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure consistent reporting of fume events by airlines operating flights to and from the UK.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The UK has a well-established regulatory requirement for reporting events that could endanger aircraft outlined in UK Reg (EU) No 376/2014. Fume and smoke events must be reported and are subsequently analysed by specialists working in the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to inform policy.
The scientific literature on toxicology of fume events is under continuous review by colleagues working in the CAA’s Medical Department. The CAA position statement on Cabin Air Quality can be found at this webpage. This includes a detailed overview of the research that has been undertaken on the topic and the conclusions of a recent study commissioned by my department and undertaken by the Committee on Toxicity (COT). This found that levels of the chemical contaminants reviewed in aircraft cabin air are unlikely to cause adverse health effects following acute or long-term exposures.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate her Department has made of the potential public health impact of excess nitrogen oxide emissions from diesel vehicles fitted with defeat devices since 2015.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to reducing air pollution from all forms of transport.
The department recognises that elevated NOx emissions from diesel vehicles contribute to poor air quality. The Department has not produced a specific UK-only assessment of the potential health impact.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s Market Surveillance Unit (MSU) is investigating cases of possible non-compliant diesel emissions in cars and vans. The investigations aim to ensure any non-compliance found is fixed as soon as reasonably possible, working together with manufacturers to achieve real-world impacts on air quality.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if her Department will take steps to ensure that vehicles fitted with illegal emissions defeat devices are (a) recalled and (b) rectified at no cost to the vehicle owner.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s Market Surveillance Unit (MSU) is investigating cases of possible non-compliant diesel emissions in cars and vans. The investigations aim to ensure any non-compliance found is fixed as soon as reasonably possible, working together with manufacturers to achieve real-world impacts on air quality.
Where an investigation into the emissions has identified emissions that do not meet the required standard, the MSU will work with the manufacturer to implement improvement plans and, where necessary, recall affected vehicles. In the event of non-compliance, work to bring the vehicle into compliance will be done at no expense to the owner.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to provide (a) additional funding and (b) guidance to local authorities to support the expansion of School Streets schemes across England.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
On 19 November 2024, Active Travel England and the Department for Transport published guidance for local authorities in England on how to set up and manage a School Streets scheme. This can be found on the government website.
Funding for School Streets Schemes is available from a variety of funding sources, including the Consolidated Active Travel Fund which was announced in February 2025 as part of £222.5 million of funding being made available for local authorities for 2024/25-25/26. Additionally, the Spending Review of June 2025 allocated £616 million over the next four years to build and maintain walking, wheeling, and cycling infrastructure. Further funding is available from wider transport funds, such as Transport for City Regions settlements.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the number of diesel vehicles in the UK that are fitted with illegal defeat devices.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is investigating a range of Euro 5 and early Euro 6 diesel vehicles where potential non-compliance has been identified.
There are currently 95 vehicle models from 28 brands under investigation. Manufacturers with a vehicle model under investigation have received a notification of this. For legal and operational reasons, the DVSA does not publish case-specific figures during active investigations.