Asked by: Kim Leadbeater (Labour - Spen Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to help tackle potential barriers to the provision of lighting on (a) walking, (b) wheeling and (c) cycling paths.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Active Travel England (ATE) recognises that good lighting is essential for enabling safe and inclusive walking, wheeling and cycling, particularly during winter months and after dark.
The Spending Review in June 2025 allocated £616 million for Active Travel England to support local authorities to build and maintain walking and cycling infrastructure from 2026/27 onwards. This comes on top of £222.5 million announced in February 2025 for local authorities over 2024/25-25/26, which can be used by authorities to reduce barriers to the provision of lighting.
In addition, to address potential barriers to providing lighting, ATE Supports local authorities in relation to designing active travel schemes through guidance and our tools ensure that lighting is integrated into street design. Guidance is available such as in LTN 1/20 - Cycle Infrastructure Design (LTN 1/20), Manual for Streets, and Inclusive Mobility. In addition, the ATE Route Check Tool includes metrics for lighting coverage, visibility, and light pollution.
Asked by: Kim Leadbeater (Labour - Spen Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of providing commuted sums for maintenance within active travel capital funding.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
In the Spending Review we announced that we are allocating £616 million for Active Travel England from 2026/27 to 2029/30 to support local authorities to both build and maintain cycling and walking infrastructure. This is in addition to almost £300 million for active travel between 2024/25 and 2025/26, which we announced in February.
It is for local authorities to determine how best to use the funding available to them, including what amount to set aside for maintenance purposes.
Asked by: Kim Leadbeater (Labour - Spen Valley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of (a) funding for the Canal & River Trust to maintain and improve England’s waterways and (b) the long-term funding arrangements for the Trust.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government is currently providing the Canal and River Trust with a 15-year grant (2012-2027) totalling about £740 million to support maintenance of the canal network infrastructure. When it was set up in 2012, the Government also provided the Trust with a permanent endowment fund now worth around £1 billion that generates a further quarter of its income. A review of the grant funding in 2021-2023 concluded that the Trust is providing value for money and there was a good case for continued grant funding. A further substantial 10-year grant from 2027 of £401 million was confirmed by the Government in August 2024. This further grant reflects the importance of the country’s inland waterways and continues to support the Trust in the long-standing objective of reducing its reliance on public funding while developing alternative funding sources.