Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has had discussions with train operators on the level of demand for train services at Worcester Park station post Covid-19.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Department officials are in regular conversation with South Western Railway regarding their service provision in response to demand. When reviewing train services, the Department needs to assess business cases and balance demand with value for the taxpayer in its considerations.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department recognises the use of Malaysian driving licenses.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is currently working towards putting in place a driving licence exchange agreement with Malaysia. This is subject to public consultation and the introduction of domestic legislation.
Currently, holders of a driving licence issued in Malaysia who become resident in the UK can drive small vehicles (motorcars and motorcycles) for up to 12 months from the date they become resident in the UK. To continue driving after this period the licence holder must apply for a provisional driving licence and pass both a theory and practical driving test here. If the holder of a driving licence issued in Malaysia is only visiting the UK they can drive using their Malaysian licence for up to 12 months from the date they last entered the UK.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made representations to the Mayor of London on the Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Action Plan.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Secretary of State has not made any representations to the Mayor of London on the Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Action Plan. The Government sets the regulatory structure within which 263 licensing authorities in England license the taxi and private hire vehicle sector and issues guidance to assist them in doing this. Transport for London is the licensing authority for London. The Taxi and Private Hire Action Plan is a matter for the Mayor of London and Transport for London.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason late-night services at Worcester Park station are not being reinstated between Thursday and Sunday.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Worcester Park continues to have a later train on Fridays and Saturdays from London Waterloo, but there is judged to be insufficient demand to justify the costs of a similar provision on Thursdays and Sundays.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will have discussions with Transport for London on mitigation of the potential impact of fare increases on commuters in London in March 2025.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Transport in London is devolved and decisions on TfL fares are for the Mayor of London and TfL. Department for Transport ministers and officials speak regularly with TfL on a wide range of issues impacting commuters in the capital.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will provide extra funding to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency to help tackle backlogs in driving tests.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times.
Measures in place to reduce waiting times include the recruitment of new driving examiners (DE), conducting tests outside regular hours, including at weekends and on public holidays, and buying back annual leave from DEs. DVSA also continues to deploy DEs from areas with lower waiting times into those where waiting times are longer.
DVSA is largely funded from the fees it charges for the delivery of its operational activities including driving tests.
DVSA keeps the fees it charges for all of its statutory services, including driving tests, under continuous review. Any proposals to change any fees would be subject to HM Treasury approval and public consultation.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to criminalise the practice of bots reselling driving tests at inflated prices.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
To ensure fairness for everyone wanting to book a practical driving test, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) continues to work hard to combat the unscrupulous practice of reselling tests, often at significant profit. The agency encourages all customers to book a test through the official channel on GOV.UK where customers can book, change and cancel tests. The agency does not license any service to resell test slots.
DVSA operates an online booking service (OBS) for approved driving instructors (ADI) and trainers so that they can book and manage driving and riding tests for their pupils. DVSA has made changes to the OBS by stopping automatic online registrations to use the service, ensuring each company that registers employs an ADI and removing access for any companies not linked to driving instructors.
In January 2023, the DVSA changed the terms and conditions for using the booking service to help prevent anyone from selling tests at profit. Since then, the DVSA has issued 341 warnings, 785 suspensions, and closed 757 business accounts for misuse of its booking service.
DVSA is deploying enhanced bot protection to stop automated systems from buying up test slots unfairly.
DVSA’s work in this area is ongoing and will continue to take steps to address these practices.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make it her policy to reverse fare increases introduced in 2024 on South Western Railway when it is brought into public ownership in 2025.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Whilst it is our ambition through public ownership to deliver a more affordable railway, any long-term changes or concessions made to rail fares policy require balancing against the potential impacts on passengers, taxpayers and the railway.
Through future legislation, we will set out the role Great British Railways will have in fares, ticketing, and other operational aspects of the Railway. Fares and ticketing will continue to be the responsibility of train operators until Great British Railways is established.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to re-instate late night services at Worcester Park station.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
When adding or reinstating services, the Department needs to assess business cases and balance demand with value for the taxpayer in its considerations. There are currently no plans to reinstate a later train between Sunday and Thursday. However, a later Friday and Saturday service was reinstated from December 2020 departing from Waterloo at twenty-five minutes past midnight.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking through her policy of public ownership of the railways to (a) tackle last-minute train cancellations and (b) improve service reliability.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Ministers have been clear that rail services have been failing passengers. Bringing train operations into public ownership is the first step in the Government’s plan to improve the railways for passengers and taxpayers. Great British Railways, when established, will take a whole rail system view, ensuring that all parts of the sector are working together, to deliver against Ministers’ priorities and improve reliability for passengers.