Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 21 March 2024 to Question 9010 on Avanti West Coast: Standards, how many part cancellations of Avanti West Coast scheduled services have occurred as a result of shortage of crew since 1 January 2024.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Avanti West Coast (AWC) has reported a total of 292 part cancelations attributed to train crew shortages compared to 18,671 planned services between 1 January 2024 and 18 March 2024.
Traincrew shortages, linked to a lack of driver overtime and ongoing industrial action, present a challenge to running services with the reliability passengers expect. Difficulties in managing historic train crew terms and conditions will continue to impact AWC services until modernisation of working arrangements can be agreed.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what payments (a) have been made and (b) he plans to make to Avanti West Coast under the terms of the service quality regime agreed with that company.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
To date, no fees have been paid to Avanti West Coast under the Service Quality Regime (SQR). This is because the first period to be assessed to determine the Performance Fee under SQR relates to the scores achieved between April and October 2023, and the evaluation process for this period is still underway.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many scheduled services Avanti West Coast have cancelled as a result of shortage of crew since 1 January 2024.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Avanti West Coast has reported a total of 798 full cancelations attributed to traincrew shortages compared to 18,671 planned services between 1 January 2024 and 18 March 2023.
Traincrew shortages, linked to a lack of driver overtime and ongoing industrial action, present a challenge to running services with the reliability passengers expect. Difficulties in managing historic traincrew terms and conditions will continue to impact AWC services until modernisation of working arrangements can be agreed.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is taking steps with Avanti West Coast to improve the standard of customer service provided by that company.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Department meets with Avanti West Coast regularly to discuss its performance, across all areas including Customer Experience, and where improvement is required. Over the next few months Avanti West Coast is working to introduce a brand-new fleet of electric and bi-mode Hitachi trains offering more space and a quieter journey for passengers along the North Wales mainline.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of goods in value (a) imported from and (b) exported to the European Union except the Republic of Ireland were conveyed by (i) sea, (ii) air, (iii) rail, (iv) road and ferry and (v) road and Channel tunnel in each of the last five years.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport does not collect data on the value of goods import and exported through the border. His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) do collect this data and is available for public use at: https://www.uktradeinfo.com/trade-data/
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of goods in value (a) imported from and (b) exported to the European Union passed through the Port of Dover in each of the last five years.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport does not collect data on the value of goods import and exported through the border. His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) do collect this data and is available for public use at: https://www.uktradeinfo.com/trade-data/
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the proposed electrification of the North Wales coast rail line will extend to (a) Manchester and (b) Crewe.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
We are working closely with the rail industry to develop and deliver on the Government priorities outlined in the Prime Minister’s Network North announcement, which includes an unprecedented £1 billion investment to fund the electrification of the North Wales Main Line, bringing parts of North Wales within an hour of Manchester. We are in the early stages of planning the next steps for the North Wales electrification scheme and will share further information when that work is complete. Our investment is intended to enable the operation of electric trains over the full North Wales Coast line between Holyhead and Crewe.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of when the North Wales Coast Railway will be electrified.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
We are working closely with the rail industry to develop and deliver on the Government priorities outlined in the Prime Minister’s Network North announcement, which includes an unprecedented £1 billion investment to fund the electrification of the North Wales Main Line, bringing parts of North Wales within an hour of Manchester. We are in the early stages of planning the next steps for the North Wales electrification scheme and will share further information when that work is complete. Our investment is intended to enable the operation of electric trains over the full North Wales Coast line between Holyhead and Crewe.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the projected electrification of the main North Wales coast rail line will extend to Holyhead.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
We are working closely with the rail industry to develop and deliver on the Government priorities outlined in the Prime Minister’s Network North announcement, which includes an unprecedented £1 billion investment to fund the electrification of the North Wales Main Line, bringing parts of North Wales within an hour of Manchester. We are in the early stages of planning the next steps for the North Wales electrification scheme and will share further information when that work is complete. Our investment is intended to enable the operation of electric trains over the full North Wales Coast line between Holyhead and Crewe.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had recent discussions with his European counterparts on prohibiting Aeroflot flights from operating in the territory and airspace of those countries.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Secretary of State for Transport has had recent discussions with his Ukrainian counterpart. Officials from the Department for Transport have engaged with European counterparts on airspace restrictions. Following the UK’s decision to restrict UK airspace to all Russian aircraft (both scheduled and non-scheduled) on 25 February 2022, the European Union announced it would restrict all EU airspace to Russian aircraft from 27 February 2022.