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Written Question
Aviation
Monday 29th July 2019

Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish a response to the consultation document entitled, Aviation 2050-the future of UK aviation, published in December 2019.

Answered by Grant Shapps - Secretary of State for Defence

It remains the government's intention to publish an Aviation 2050 strategy later this year, which will respond to the recent consultation.


Written Question
M20: Noise
Thursday 31st January 2019

Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of noise levels on the M20 between Junctions 8-9.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The noise levels on this section of the M20 have been assessed as part of DEFRA’s Noise Action Plan. This identified 10 areas between M20 Junction 8-9 which required investigation because of the level of noise.

Action has been taken to mitigate noise at five out of the 10 areas with the installation of noise insulation. Highways England are working to address the remaining five areas, including trials to test options to reduce the noise generated by concrete road surfaces.


Written Question
M20: Accidents
Thursday 31st January 2019

Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of accidents on the M20 between Junctions 8 and 9 in each of the last 10 years.

Answered by Jesse Norman

Below are the accident figures for the number of reported accidents on the M20 Junctions 8-9 in each of the last 10 years

Number of reported road accidents on the M20 (Juncs: 8-9)1, 2007 to 2017

Year

Number of accidents

2007

8

2008

12

2009

15

2010

6

2011

6

2012

10

2013

8

2014

5

2015

6

2016

11

2017

7

Source: DfT Stats19

1. Includes all the slip roads on and off at each of the junctions.


Written Question
Lower Thames Crossing
Thursday 21st December 2017

Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the new Lower Thames Crossing on traffic congestion on the (a) A229 (b) A249 (c) M2 Junctions 3, 5 and 7.

Answered by Jesse Norman

Forecasts of traffic impacts across all routes affected by the Lower Thames Crossing including A229, A249 and M2 were included in the economic assessment that informed the selection of the scheme’s preferred route. This appraisal was reported in section 4 of the Post-Consultation Scheme Assessment Report Volume 5.

Highways England are now undertaking more detailed consideration of the traffic impacts of the proposals across the local and wider road network.

This further assessment will inform the detailed design of the scheme and will be published in 2018 ahead of the scheme’s statutory consultation.


Written Question
Motorways: Kent
Monday 20th November 2017

Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the UK's freight traffic uses the Kent motorway network; and what proportion of funding for motorway resurfacing has been allocated to the M20 in the last five years.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Department produces estimates of vehicle miles by vehicle type and road type. Based on 2016 estimates, 16.6 billion HGV miles were travelled on Britain’s roads. 1.9% of these HGV miles occurred on the Kent motorway network.

11% of all motorway resurfacing in the South East region during the last five years occurred on the M20.


Written Question
Motorways: Noise
Thursday 16th November 2017

Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which parts of the motorway network his Department defines as noise important areas; when Junctions 6 to 9 of the M20 were last assessed to establish whether noise exceeded the levels of the Environmental Noise (England) Regulations 2006; and how noise levels between Junctions 6 to 9 of the M20 compare to such levels on other parts of the motorway network.

Answered by Jesse Norman

Noise important areas are defined by the Department for Environment and Rural Affairs, under the Environmental Noise (England) Regulations 2006. There are 13 noise important areas between junctions 6 and 9 of the M20. There are no noise levels defined in these Regulations so it is not possible to state how many areas are in exceedance, but noise levels along this stretch of motorway are broadly similar to other parts of the motorway network with similar levels of traffic flow.


Written Question
M20: Accidents
Thursday 16th November 2017

Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) fatal accidents and (b) serious accidents took place on the M20 between junctions 6 and 7 and 8 and 9 London-bound and coast-bound in (i) 2013-14, (ii) 2014-15, (iii) 2015-16 and (iv) 2016-17; and how that figure compares to the average number of such accidents for all UK motorways.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The information requested for 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16 is set out in the table below.

Highways England responds to requests for collision data using validated STATS19 data, which forms part of the National Statistics.

FINANCIAL YEAR ( APR-MAR )

Fatal accidents

2013-14

2014-15

2015-16

M20 between junctions 6 and 7 ( coast-bound)

0

0

0

M20 between junctions 7 and 6 ( London – bound )

0

0

2

M20 between junctions 8 and 9 ( coast-bound)

0

0

0

M20 between junctions 9 and 8 ( London – bound )

1

0

0

Serious accidents

2013-14

2014-15

2015-16

M20 between junctions 6 and 7 ( coast-bound)

0

0

0

M20 between junctions 7 and 6 ( London – bound )

0

0

0

M20 between junctions 8 and 9 ( coast-bound)

4

1

3

M20 between junctions 9 and 8 ( London – bound )

4

1

1

The equivalent accident numbers for all UK motorways in each of these years is as follows:

Number of accidents - Motorways

Year

Fatal

Fatal and Serious

2013

97

641

2014

85

680

2015

96

712

2016

87

769

Highways England do not currently have the data available by route for 2016-17.


Written Question
Department for Transport: Staff
Tuesday 20th December 2016

Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what measures his Department has in place to support those of its staff who have mental health problems.

Answered by John Hayes

The Department for Transport (DfT) and its agencies take the mental wellbeing of its staff very seriously. DfT has a variety of policies and programmes designed to help staff that find themselves suffering with poor mental health.

DfT has recently published an easy to access, practical guide for line managers on how they can support mental wellbeing in the workplace. It also includes advice on understanding the early warning signs and how to manage difficult conversations around mental health.

DfT also supports workplace adjustment passports which are a living record of adjustments that a disabled member of staff requires, including staff with mental health problems. These documents are designed to do the following:

A) Ensure that both parties, the individual and the employer, have an accurate record of what has been agreed

B) Minimise the need to re-negotiate workplace adjustments every time the employee changes jobs, is re-located or assigned a new manager within the organisation

C) Provide employees and their line managers with the basis for discussions about workplace adjustments at future meetings.

DfT has an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP). EAP support is tailored to the department and is provided by expert staff who understand our business. It offers support and signposts individuals to advice on things such as bereavement, depression, and anxiety. It also offers counselling sessions.

DfT has a Mental Health Buddy Network, set up by staff, for staff. It connects people who are suffering from mental health problems with another member of staff who is able to meet with them in complete confidence. The buddies are aware that they are not trained psychiatrists; they do not give advice but provide a listening ear, and signpost to the relevant, professional organisations.

DfT has a dedicated mental health staff network, Time to Change, which is dedicated to changing the department’s culture, and remove the stigma surrounding mental health.