Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is taking steps to raise awareness of the mechanisms by which disabled people can report discrimination in the event of being refused access to a taxi or private hire vehicle.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
It is illegal for taxi and private hire vehicle (PHV) drivers to refuse the carriage of passengers with assistance dogs, and I am clear that they must comply with the law.
Responsibility for investigating allegations of discriminatory behaviour and, where appropriate, prosecuting drivers, rests with the respective local licensing authorities, and each will have its own procedure for the reporting of incidents.
We are however committed to understanding refusal incidents more clearly, and will shortly begin research on the reasons why they occur and what further steps might be taken to eradicate them.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps he has taken to encourage licensing authorities to provide mandatory disability equality training on the rights and needs of disabled passengers for taxi and private hire vehicle drivers.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
I know that disability awareness training can provide taxi and private hire vehicle (PHV) drivers with the skills, knowledge and confidence to give disabled passengers the assistance they need, and am clear that licensing authorities should use their existing powers to require drivers to complete it.
On 12th February the Government published its response to the report of the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and PHV Licensing, indicating its intention to introduce mandatory disability awareness training as part of National Minimum Standards when Parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of suicides which occurred on UK railway lines in each of the last 15 years.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
Official statistics relating to the number of suicides on the mainline railway network in Great Britain are published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) on their website at:
https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/browsereports/5
Government and the rail industry are jointly engaged in many strands of activity to reduce the number of suicides on the rail network. Last year over 1800 lifesaving interventions were made, with 2016/17 having the lowest number of suicide events recorded on the railway since the rail industry’s suicide prevention programme began in 2010.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the trend in the number of specialist road traffic officers since 2015; and what steps his Department is taking to maintain the number of specialist road traffic officers.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The number of Highways England’s Traffic Officers since 2015 is as follows:
2015: 1446
2016: 1439
2017: 1395
There has been a decrease of 51 Traffic Officers between 2015 and 2017, which equates to 3.5%.
The current total staff retention rate at Highways England is 92%, but they are not complacent. Their recruitment and selection process is being improved to include assessments that better reflect the role applicants would undertake as Traffic Officers to ensure it continues to keep and maintain sufficient staff numbers.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding model his Department has proposed for the delivery of a new train fleet for the Tyne and Wear Metro.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Department for Transport (DfT) is in discussions with Nexus regarding their proposals for new rolling stock on the Metro. DfT and HM Treasury officials continue to work with Nexus to explore various funding options.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding his Department has made available for cycling in (a) Sunderland and (b) the North East since 2010.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Since 2010, local authorities in England have benefited from over £600m of funding from the Department for Transport (DfT) for sustainable transport initiatives, including cycling and walking, through the Local Sustainable Transport Fund and its successors the Sustainable Travel Transition Year and Access Fund. Details of the areas where DfT funding has been provided can be found at: http://maps.dft.gov.uk/funding-for-sustainable-travel/index.html.
Sunderland Council has benefited from around £100,000 per annum of DfT funding since 2011-12 for Bikeability training. All other DfT funding has been provided to the North East Combined Authority (NECA), which includes Sunderland. The amount of DfT funding provided to NECA, and its predecessor, for sustainable transport (including cycling and walking) was £28.56m from 2011 – 17, this includes £16.32m of Cycle Ambition City funding. DfT does not hold data on how this funding has been allocated between each local authority.
Since 2010 there has also been additional funding, some of which will have benefited cycling and walking in the North East region. This includes through the Local Growth Fund, Highways Maintenance Block and the Integrated Transport Block. Precise amounts spent vary and will depend on decisions made by the relevant local authorities and other local bodies.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions the Government has had with the North East Combined Authority on the delivery of a new train fleet for the Tyne and Wear Metro.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Department for Transport is currently in discussions with Nexus regarding their proposals for new rolling stock on the Metro, including exploring various funding options.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government plans to take to encourage integration of bus services in the North East.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Bus Services Act 2017 contains comprehensive powers to enable local transport authorities and bus operators to work together in partnership to improve integration, not only of the local bus network but also between bus services and other modes of transport such as light and heavy rail. The Act also allows combined mayoral authorities to apply for new franchising powers. Other authorities can also apply for franchising powers with approval from the Secretary of State, subject to the necessary regulations having been made under the new section 123A(4) of Part 2 of the Transport Act 2000.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to announce a decision on the delivery of a new train fleet for the Tyne and Wear Metro.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Department for Transport (DFT) is currently in discussions with Nexus regarding their proposals for new rolling stock on the Metro, including exploring various funding options.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Government plans to relax or amend the regulations relating to the introduction of bus franchising by non-mayoral combined authorities.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Bus Services Act 2017 provides mayoral combined authorities with access to new franchising powers. Other authorities can also apply for franchising powers with approval from the Secretary of State, subject to the necessary regulations having been made under the new section 123A(4) of Part 2 of the Transport Act 2000. No such regulations have yet been made.
The Government wants to see better local bus services for passengers across the country and will assist any local authority seeking to use the powers available to them under the Bus Services Act 2017 to secure improvements. We would also encourage authorities to work closely with local bus operators and passenger representatives to determine how to use the Act’s new powers to serve their local communities better.