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Written Question
Railways: North of England
Monday 15th March 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of proposals for rail network improvements in Lancashire and Cumbria in Transport for the North’s plan for Northern Powerhouse Rail.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Department has worked closely with Northern leaders to develop a Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) network that benefits all regions of the North, including Lancashire and Cumbria. The Integrated Rail Plan (IRP), which will outline a recommended way forward on scoping, phasing and sequencing of NPR, has carefully considered the views of stakeholders across the North of England to produce an investment programme that truly reflects the key transport priorities of the North.


Written Question
Railways: North of England
Monday 15th March 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) Transport for the North’s “preferred route” for Northern Powerhouse Rail, (2) how that route was chosen, and (3) whether the route can be built with the previously announced funding estimate of £42 billion.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government has been actively considering this as part of its Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) which will outline the investment blueprint for Northern Powerhouse Rail, HS2 Phase 2b and other transport investment in the North and Midlands. Work is ongoing to establish the exact costs.


Written Question
Trains: North of England
Wednesday 10th March 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to phase out diesel traction passenger trains in the North of England.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government’s ambition is to remove all diesel-only trains from the network by 2040 and replace them with low-carbon traction technologies, including electrification, hydrogen and battery trains.

The Network Rail-led Traction Decarbonisation Network Strategy (TDNS) provides advice about which decarbonising technologies could best suit each part of the network. TDNS will inform the Department’s forthcoming Transport Decarbonisation Plan and Government decisions about the scale and pace of rail decarbonisation between now and 2050.


Written Question
Railways
Wednesday 10th March 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the statement by the Prime Minister on 22 February (HC Deb, col 626–8), what discussions they have had with train operating companies about resuming a full service on the railways; and what is the timetable for such plans.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

Train Operating Companies are preparing to meet demand as restrictions are gradually eased, as outlined by the Prime Minister on 22 February. In preparation for the return of schools on 8 March, they are working closely with local transport planning authorities and schools, to meet the demand for student travel. As demand for rail services returns, operators will plan to run the appropriate level of service for demand whilst maintaining reliability.


Written Question
Railways: North of England
Thursday 4th March 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have asked Transport for the North to delay the publication of their business case for (1) a high-speed railway route between Hull and Liverpool, or (2) part of that route; and, if so, why.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Department has asked Transport for the North to submit the Strategic Outline Case for Northern Powerhouse Rail after the Integrated Rail Plan is published. A Strategic Outline Case which is consistent with the Government’s policy and funding framework, to be set out in the Integrated Rail Plan, will allow a more rapid alignment around single route options and quicker progress than envisaged in previous plans.


Written Question
Railways: North of England
Thursday 4th March 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government when they plan to publish the Integrated Rail Plan for the North of England.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Department intends to publish the IRP in early 2021.


Written Question
Railways: North of England
Wednesday 3rd March 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with Transport for the North about (1) when the latter's report on the high-speed line between Leeds/Bradford and Manchester will be published, (2) any alternative routes, and (3) further consultation procedures.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Northern Powerhouse Rail Strategic Outline Case is expected to be published once it has been finalised with Transport for the North and approved by the Government, setting out the options under consideration. As with all major transport projects, route consultation will follow at the appropriate time.


Written Question
Public Transport
Tuesday 2nd March 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the statement by the Prime Minister on 22 February (HC Deb, col 626–8), whether they plan to provide advice to the public on returning to using public transport; and if so, when.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

We maintained public transport services so that those who need to travel can continue to do so. Travel advice encourages people use active travel modes where possible and practice social distancing whilst travelling on the public transport network for those needing to make essential journeys.

As restrictions ease we will expect journeys on public transport to increase. Operators have put in place a whole range of measures, such as enhanced cleaning, so passengers can travel safely. We will continue to provide advice on how people can travel safely; this includes on public transport.


Written Question
Electric Vehicles: Charging Points
Wednesday 10th February 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to provide assistance to households which do not have space for recharging electric vehicles from their own home; and, if so, how they plan to provide such assistance before 2030 (1) for houses where vehicles are parked on the street outside the house, and (2) for flats or apartments where communal parking facilities are not provided within the premises.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government recognises that not having access to off-street parking can be a significant barrier to motorists making the switch to zero emission vehicles and this is something we have sought to address. Local authorities are able to take advantage of the On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS), which assists them with the cost of installing chargepoints on residential streets. To date the ORCS has supported over 100 local authorities to fund more than 3,800 chargepoints for residents who do not have off-street parking. The doubling of funding for the ORCS to £20 million announced in May last year by the Transport Secretary will allow local authorities to install up to 7,200 charging devices, making charging at home and overnight easier for those without an off-street parking space.

The Government also committed at Spending Review £90 million to fund local electric vehicle charging infrastructure, to support the roll out of larger, on-street charging schemes and rapid hubs in England. Details of this fund will be announced in due course.

Drivers without off-street parking at home can also take advantage of the Workplace Charging Scheme, which provides Government support of up to £350 towards the cost of installing a charge point socket for staff and fleet use, with a maximum of 40 sockets available per business. To date over 4,000 businesses have used this scheme to install over 12,000 chargepoint sockets. There are a growing number of solutions for drivers without private parking, such as initiatives like Community Charging, where those with personal chargepoints can share access with other residents.

The Government recognises the need to do more to address the challenges in this area and will continue to work with colleagues in Government and across industry to secure improvements for residents. We will continue to support industry and local authorities across the whole of the UK to make the switch to cleaner vehicles. A clear delivery plan will be published in 2021.


Written Question
Electric Vehicles: Charging Points
Wednesday 10th February 2021

Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the provision of facilities for recharging batteries of electric vehicles to households which do not have space to charge the vehicle from their own home; and what proportion of households do not have space to charge electric vehicles from their own home.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government recognises that not having access to off-street parking can be a significant barrier to motorists making the switch to zero emission vehicles and this is something we have sought to address. Local authorities are able to take advantage of the On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS), which assists them with the cost of installing chargepoints on residential streets. To date the ORCS has supported over 100 local authorities to fund more than 3,800 chargepoints for residents who do not have off-street parking. The doubling of funding for the ORCS to £20 million announced in May last year by the Transport Secretary will allow local authorities to install up to 7,200 charging devices, making charging at home and overnight easier for those without an off-street parking space.

The Government also committed at Spending Review £90 million to fund local electric vehicle charging infrastructure, to support the roll out of larger, on-street charging schemes and rapid hubs in England. Details of this fund will be announced in due course.

Drivers without off-street parking at home can also take advantage of the Workplace Charging Scheme, which provides Government support of up to £350 towards the cost of installing a charge point socket for staff and fleet use, with a maximum of 40 sockets available per business. To date over 4,000 businesses have used this scheme to install over 12,000 chargepoint sockets. There are a growing number of solutions for drivers without private parking, such as initiatives like Community Charging, where those with personal chargepoints can share access with other residents.

The Government recognises the need to do more to address the challenges in this area and will continue to work with colleagues in Government and across industry to secure improvements for residents. We will continue to support industry and local authorities across the whole of the UK to make the switch to cleaner vehicles. A clear delivery plan will be published in 2021.