Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to plan for the potential effect on international travel of new variants of covid-19.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Government will conduct a full review of international travel restrictions by the end of January, including the approach to responding to future variants, to ensure a stable system for 2022.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the (a) coverage and (b) accessibility of hydrogen filling stations in the UK.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Hydrogen is likely to be fundamental to achieving the full decarbonisation of UK transport. Our £23 million Hydrogen Transport Programme has supported the building of three new refuelling stations, with a further three planned; as well as upgrades to two existing stations, with a further four upgrades planned. As of September 2021, there are fifteen publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling stations across the UK which provide hydrogen suitable for use by vehicles.
Our £20 million Zero Emission Road Freight Trials (ZERFT) are looking at hydrogen refuelling infrastructure in the UK. The trials will inform which technology, or technologies, are best suited for use in the UK and help to clarify our understanding and identify the potential barriers to the installation of refuelling infrastructure, so that these can be addressed before rollout.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Table SFR0303 of the Seafarers in the UK Shipping Industry statistics, published on 24 February 2021, what proportion of (a) UK, (b) EEA and (c) non-EEA seafarers in each seafarer type has received at least one shot of vaccine against covid-19; and if he will outline the procedures in place to monitor covid-19 vaccination rates in countries supplying labour to the UK shipping industry.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
A person’s occupation is not recorded when administering the Covid-19 vaccination. Seafarers in the UK are being vaccinated as part of the general population, with all adults aged 18 and over now eligible. Proof of Covid vaccination is not required to obtain a permit to work in the UK maritime sector.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress he has made on implementing the Clean Maritime Plan.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Department has made good progress in implementing the Clean Maritime Plan. As set out in the plan, clean maritime innovation in the UK has been supported with a round of Research and Development grants and a Clean Maritime Innovation call, and a consultation on how the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation could be used to encourage the uptake of low carbon fuels in the maritime sector was launched. A Clean Maritime Award was established to celebrate leaders in the field of emissions reduction, a study to identify and support potential UK zero emission shipping clusters was undertaken and the Maritime Future Technologies team within the Maritime & Coastguard Agency was launched. This year, a Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition, which build on the commitments set out in the Clean Maritime Plan was launched.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the availability of shore side electric recharging facilities for roll-on roll-off ferries in the Port of Dover; and how far that port is to the nearest grid connection of sufficient capacity to support those facilities.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Department has made no assessment of the availability of shore side electric recharging facilities for roll-on roll-off ferries in the Port of Dover and of its related grid requirements.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will list the issues discussed at the last meeting of the Clean Maritime Council.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The department regularly engages with the Clean Maritime Council on all matters concerning maritime decarbonisation. The Council last met on 19 May 2021 and the agenda included a discussion on the recent announcement to include International Aviation and Shipping emissions in the Sixth Carbon Budget, as well as future domestic policy priorities including the forthcoming Transport Decarbonisation Plan. Officials also gave a brief update on the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to publish the Transport Decarbonisation Plan before the summer 2021 Parliamentary recess.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Our Transport Decarbonisation Plan will set an ambitious pathway to end UK transport’s carbon emissions by 2050 at the latest and we intend to publish it shortly.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the Clean Maritime Council has met since October 2018 to date; and if he will list its membership.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The department regularly engages with the Clean Maritime Council on all matters that concern them, including reducing the sector’s emissions. The Council has met eight times since October 2018, including four times in the past six months since December 2020. Meetings were temporarily paused in 2020 due to Covid-19 but were resumed virtually at the end of the year.
The organisations represented on the Clean Maritime Council include the British Ports Association, Clean Cargo Working Group, Engie, IMarEST, ING, Innovate UK, Maritime Enterprise Working Group, Maritime London, ORE Catapult, Red Funnel, Smart Green Shipping Alliance, Strathclyde University/MarRI-UK, University College London, UK Chamber of Shipping, UK Major Ports Group as well as the Department for Transport, the Maritime Coastguard Agency, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department plans to update air passenger forecasts following the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Department will look to publish new long-term aviation forecasts in due course. However, this is a period of great uncertainty and we need to observe a more settled recovery before we can begin to reflect this in any future forecasts.
Asked by: Mike Kane (Labour - Wythenshawe and Sale East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to hold a consultation on establishing a long-term price support mechanism for sustainable aviation fuels.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Government believes that sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) have a crucial role to play in reaching our goal of net zero by 2050. We already provide strong support to the sector through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) and our low carbon fuel industry competitions.
To further build on this existing support, as part of the Prime Minister's 10 Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution, the Government announced £15m for a new SAF industry competition, £3m to set up a SAF clearing house, and an intention to consult on a blending mandate to drive SAF uptake in the UK. This consultation is planned for the summer and will be complemented by supporting ambitions presented in the department’s upcoming Transport Decarbonisation Plan and Net Zero Aviation Consultation.
The Government will continue working with stakeholders through the Jet Zero Council SAF Delivery Group and other channels to explore what further policies might be needed to support the development of the sector, including demand-side measures or business models that address price risk.