Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plan to remove the temporary permitted weight limit of 32 tonnes on volumetric concrete mixers; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
There is no temporary permitted weight limit of 32 tonnes for volumetric concrete mixers (VCMs). 32 tonnes is the standard weight limit applicable to 4-axle rigid HGVs.
Following consultation in 2017, the Government implemented a temporary arrangement whereby a limited number of VCMs would be permitted to temporarily operate at weights higher than the standard 32 tonnes for vehicles of their design, using Vehicle Special Orders (VSOs). This was in recognition that, historically, some in the sector had operated VCMs at laden weights in excess of the 32-tonne limit. This temporary arrangement was put in place to allow time for the industry to adjust to the normal permitted weight limits over a reasonable timescale. It was not enacted as a step towards increasing permitted vehicle weights more widely.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure all NHS trusts provide three full cycles of IVF for women under 40, as recommended by NICE guidelines.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
The Government expects clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to commission fertility services in line with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidelines, to ensure equitable access across England. We are aware that some individual CCGs set additional non-clinical criteria outside NICE’s fertility guidelines. We have undertaken an internal review of this issue and are currently considering options to address these variations.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of regional airports on restoring flights to long-haul destinations; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Robert Courts
The government recognises the continued challenges faced by the aviation industry as we look towards reopening international travel further.
Ministers and officials engage regularly with the aviation industry, including with regional airports, and remain committed to working collaboratively to reopen international travel in a safe and secure way.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what financial impact assessment he has made of the effect on UK manufacturing companies of obtaining AS9100 certification.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government has not made a financial impact assessment of the effect on UK manufacturing companies of obtaining AS9100 certification. This is an industry standard rather than a regulatory requirement.
The UK has been at the forefront of aviation for more than 100 years. Our Aerospace Sector is a world leader in the design, manufacture and aftercare of some of the highest value products on aircraft – wings, engines and advanced systems. Aerospace companies in the UK work to the highest quality and standards which ensures the world leading standing of our Aerospace sector.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of the (a) price and (b) volume of timber imported into the UK since the end of the transition period; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Greg Hands
The United Kingdom imported £3.2bn timber in 2020 (down from £3.4bn in 2019), over two-thirds of which (69%) was imported from the EU. In 2021, in the four months from January to April, the UK has imported £1.4bn of timber (70% from the EU).
By weight this was 6.1 Megatonnes of timber imports in 2020. So far in 2021 (January to April) 2.4 Megatonnes of timber have been imported.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment she has made of the impact of introducing an anti-dumping surcharge for aluminium products on the UK's manufacturing sector.
Answered by Ranil Jayawardena
The United Kingdom’s policy on trade remedies, under which anti-dumping is one measure, is to protect British producers from harm caused by unfair trading practices, such as dumping, subsidies, or unforeseen surges in imports.
The Trade Remedies Authority (TRA), established on 1st June, is Britain’s independent arms-length body responsible for investigating unfair trading practices or unforeseen surges in imports, based on the evidence available.
If the TRA concludes that a measure should be imposed following an investigation, it will provide an impartial and evidence-based recommendation to the Secretary of State. When a recommendation is received, the Secretary of State may only accept or reject it and cannot amend the details of the TRA’s recommendation.
As part of our transition policy, we transitioned one anti-dumping measure on aluminium foil in small rolls from China, and one on certain aluminium road wheels from China. The TRA will conduct a review of the two measures in due course.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what her policy is on the reintroduction of an anti-dumping surcharge on aluminium; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Ranil Jayawardena
The United Kingdom’s policy on trade remedies, under which anti-dumping is one measure, is to protect British producers from harm caused by unfair trading practices, such as dumping, subsidies, or unforeseen surges in imports.
The Trade Remedies Authority (TRA), established on 1st June, is Britain’s independent arms-length body responsible for investigating unfair trading practices or unforeseen surges in imports, based on the evidence available.
If the TRA concludes that a measure should be imposed following an investigation, it will provide an impartial and evidence-based recommendation to the Secretary of State. When a recommendation is received, the Secretary of State may only accept or reject it and cannot amend the details of the TRA’s recommendation.
As part of our transition policy, we transitioned one anti-dumping measure on aluminium foil in small rolls from China, and one on certain aluminium road wheels from China. The TRA will conduct a review of the two measures in due course.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress he has made on implementing the provisions of the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Act provides for the biggest reform of divorce law in fifty years and will reduce conflict between couples legally ending a marriage or civil partnership. At Commons Third Reading of the Bill the Lord Chancellor explained the need to allow time for careful implementation and that, at that early stage, the Government was working towards an indicative timetable of autumn 2021. This was an ambitious timetable.
Following Royal Assent on 25 June 2020, the Ministry of Justice has worked closely with the Family Procedure Rule Committee to identify the significant changes needed to Family Procedure Rules and supporting practice directions, and to devise some key new procedures. Those procedural changes are critical as they will shape amendments to family court forms, the online digital divorce service, and information on gov.uk. The Family Procedure Rule Committee has now consulted on draft rule amendments and is working to finalise these rules post consultation.
In parallel, officials have begun work to identify, design and build the necessary amendments to court forms and, importantly, amend the new online digital divorce service while the procedural rules themselves are being finalised. This work includes consideration of commitments made during the passage of the Act through parliament to improve the information and signposting for couples when they navigate the legal process of divorce, dissolution or separation.
The Ministry of Justice is committed to ensuring that the amended digital service allows for a smooth transition from the existing service which has reformed the way divorce is administered in the courts and improved the service received by divorcing couples at a traumatic point in their lives. Following detailed design work, it is now clear that these amendments, along with the full and rigorous testing of the new system ahead of implementation, will not conclude before the end of the year.
The Government recognises the need for clarity on when these important reforms will come into force. This will now be on the common commencement date of 6 April 2022. While this delay is unfortunate it is essential that we take the time to get this right. The new divorce process will work to reduce conflict, which is especially damaging for children, and will reflect work the Government are undertaking through the Reducing Parental Conflict programme. That programme will build the evidence on what works to reduce harmful levels of parental conflict below the threshold of domestic abuse, working with local areas to help them embed support in their local services for families. We will also use this opportunity to strengthen signposting to family mediation as a means to resolve arrangements for children and the division of assets on divorce.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what his policy is on outdoor stadia returning to full capacity for spectators as covid-19 restrictions ease; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Financial Secretary (Treasury)
The government recognises the importance of spectators to competitive sport and remains committed to working towards their full return to stadiums as soon as it is safe to do so.
We published the ‘COVID-19 Response - Spring 2021’ setting out the roadmap out of the lockdown restrictions for England, and which explains how restrictions will be eased over time. It is now confirmed that Step 3 of the roadmap will go ahead as planned on Monday 17 May which will see fans return to stadia, albeit under capacity caps.
We further welcome the return of spectators at selected events as part of the science-led Events Research Programme (ERP). The ERP is currently running its first phase of April and May pilot events to inform decisions around the safe removal of social distancing at Step 4 of the roadmap. The pilots are running across a range of settings, venues, and activities, so that findings support the full reopening of similar settings across multiple sectors.
As stated in the Roadmap, the government hopes to be in a position to remove all legal limits on social contact later this summer, no earlier than 21 June. This will be subject to the outcomes of the 4 government-led reviews, including the ERP.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has for the further electrification of railway lines; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris
1110 miles of track in Great Britain have been electrified for passenger traffic from 2010 up to March 2020, compared to 63 miles between 1997 and 2010. Further electrification of the network will play an important role in our plans to decarbonise the railway, alongside the deployment of battery and hydrogen trains on some lines. The Department’s forthcoming Transport Decarbonisation Plan will set out the government’s ambition for the scale and pace of rail decarbonisation between now and 2050.