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Written Question
Shipping: Conditions of Employment
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he has taken to help ensure greater job security for seafarers in the last two years.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

In July 2023 we launched the Seafarers’ Charter, which among other measures requires that operators who obtain full Charter status do not use voyage contracts except in exceptional circumstances. This means that seafarers aboard ships run by a Charter operator can be confident that in most cases after their period of time aboard a vessel has ended, they will continue to have work without needing to reapply. I am pleased that 5 of the 6 major international ferry companies operating from the UK have now committed to meeting the Charter requirements.

Examples of ‘exceptional circumstances’ might be if a seafarer has been taken ill and the operator needs to bring someone onboard at short notice to cover the position, or if a piece of machinery has broken and they brought an additional seafarer onboard to fix it while it the vessel was underway.

We continue to work to improve seafarer protections in the UK and around the world.


Written Question
P&O Ferries
Tuesday 26th March 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on implementing its nine-point plan in relation to P&O ferries since July 2022.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government has made substantial progress in implementing the Nine Point Plan. This includes:

· Bringing in the Seafarers’ Wages Act, which will ensure that those working on ships operating a regular international service from the UK are paid at least an equivalent to the National Minimum Wage while in UK waters. This will help to reduce the financial benefit of employing seafarers from far afield on worse terms and conditions. The Act is expected to come into force in the summer alongside French legislation which together will form a minimum wage corridor across the Dover strait, backed by law on both sides.· Introducing a statutory Code of Practice to address ‘fire and rehire’ practices, aiming to ensure employees are properly consulted and treated fairly. Employment tribunals will be able to increase employee compensation by 25% if an employer unreasonably fails to comply.· Launching the Seafarers’ Charter, with Brittany Ferries, Condor, DFDS, Stena Line and now P&O Ferries committing to work towards meeting its requirements. These include paying seafarers at least an equivalent to the national minimum wage throughout their engagement, having 2 week on / 2 week off tours of duty as a baseline on high-intensity routes, and providing adequate training and development opportunities.

We continue to work to improve seafarer welfare in the UK and around the world.


Written Question
Shipping: Conditions of Employment
Tuesday 26th March 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of shipping companies on the working conditions of seafarers.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Seafarer welfare is a priority for the Government and Ministers regularly discuss this with maritime stakeholders. Most recently, on 19 March Lord Davies met the Chief Executive of Brittany Ferries, one of the five major international ferry companies operating from the UK that has committed to working towards meeting the requirements of the Seafarer’s Charter.


Written Question
Bus Services: North Yorkshire
Thursday 21st March 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve (a) connectivity and (b) reliability in bus services in (i) York and (ii) North Yorkshire.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government recognises the importance of local bus services to ensuring communities can stay connected and has announced over £4.5 billion to support and improve bus services since 2020. This includes over £2 billion to help local authorities deliver their Bus Service Improvement Plans, of which City of York Council and North Yorkshire County Council have been allocated over £18.5 million and £6.4 million respectively between 2022/23 and 2024/25.

The Government also makes over £200 million available to bus operators every year through the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) to help them maintain their network. A further £42 million in BSOG funding is provided directly to local authorities to help subsidise socially necessary bus services that might otherwise be commercially unviable. City of York Council receives £150,416 and North Yorkshire County Council receives over £1 million of this funding every year. City of York have also been allocated a total of £10.3 million through the ZEBRA 1 scheme and North Yorkshire were awarded £7.8 million.


Written Question
Bus Services
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of changes in the level of bus services on (a) economic inequality and (b) old people.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department considers the needs of all transport users when making policy decisions and recognises how important local bus services are to keeping people and communities connected. The Government has provided unprecedented levels of funding in recent years to support and improve bus services, having announced more than £4.5 billion since 2020. This includes the £300 million we are currently providing to local authorities and bus operators to support and improve bus services until April 2025.

In addition, the Department also makes nearly £260 million available every year through the Bus Service Operators Grant to help run services that might otherwise be unprofitable and could lead to cancellation. The Government also supports council spending of around £1 billion annually to provide free off-peak bus travel in England to those who have reached the state pension age and those with eligible disabilities. This ensures they can access vital services, stay active and avoid isolation. Furthermore, the Department is providing nearly £600 million of funding to cap single bus fares in England outside London at £2 until the end of 2024.

The Government is also investing significantly to drive improvements to bus services, including over £2 billion to help local authorities to deliver their Bus Service Improvement Plans.

In 2022 the Department commissioned a three-year process, impact and value for money evaluation of Local Transport Authorities who have received funding from the Department. This work will report on any variations in impacts by different age groups using a range of methods including survey findings and bus patronage data where available. An interim report is expected to be published in 2024 with a final report due in 2025.


Written Question
Buses: Electric Vehicles
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will set a deadline for all buses to be electrified.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

In the National Bus Strategy, Government committed to setting a legal end date for the sale of new, non–zero emission buses, and to set an expectation for when the entire fleet should be zero emission. In 2022, the Department held a public consultation on end of sales dates between 2025 and 2032 to gather views and inform a decision. We will make an announcement shortly. In this Parliament, we have allocated over £460m of dedicated funding for Zero Emission Buses in England (outside London).


Written Question
Community Transport
Monday 29th January 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the viability of community transport schemes.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department makes available over £3 million each year to community transport operators through the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG), supporting them to continue delivering inclusive and accessible transport across the country.

A new uplift of 60% has been added to BSOG claims for community transport operators until 31 March 2025. This means operators will receive £1.60 for every £1 claimed, reflecting the increased costs faced by the sector.

We have also encouraged Local Transport Authorities to engage with community transport operators when preparing their Bus Service Improvement Plans, which are vital in setting out an area’s long term plans for bus services and how they will be improved.

Our £20 million Rural Mobility Fund (RMF) in England is supporting 16 innovative, demand-led minibus trials in rural and suburban areas across 16 local authorities in England. These pilots are exploring whether Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) can serve these communities more effectively than traditional public transport solutions alone.


Written Question
Bus Services
Monday 29th January 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to support local authorities to maintain bus services.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Government has announced over £4.5 billion to support and improve bus services since 2020. This includes £2 billion in emergency and recovery funding to maintain services during the pandemic; over £1 billion allocated in 2022 to help local transport authorities deliver their Bus Service Improvement Plans; a further £1 billion redirected from HS2 to improve bus services in the North and the Midlands as part of Network North; £300 million in ongoing funding to support and improve services until April 2025; and nearly £600 million to cap single bus fares at £2 from 1 January 2023 until the end of 2024.

From the further £1 billion redirected from HS2, City of York council has been allocated £1.153m as a first instalment, for 2024/25.

The Department also makes around £260 million available every year to bus operators and local authorities through the Bus Service Operators Grant to help run services that might otherwise be unprofitable and could lead to cancellation. £42 million of this funding goes to local authorities.


Written Question
Bus Services
Monday 15th January 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of advanced partnership arrangements for co-ordinating local bus services; what best practice he has identified; and if he will issue guidance to local partnerships on minimum standards.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

96% of Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) in England which opted to deliver their local bus services through an Enhanced Partnership (EP) have now developed and published their EP schemes, based on their local Bus Service Improvement Plan.

EPs have facilitated closer working relationships between LTAs, operators and other local stakeholders, supported by over £1bn of BSIP delivery funding for the period 2022/23 to 2024/25.

The Government has published guidance on developing EPs which sets out the required standards for delivery of LTAs’ EP scheme commitments.


Written Question
Local Transport Plans
Thursday 11th January 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his planned timetable is for publishing updated guidance for local transport authorities on local transport plans; and what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that local stakeholders reviewing their LTPs are made aware of any potential changes to guidance.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

As a result of the unprecedented uplift in local transport funding announced as part of the Network North plan, the Department is reconsidering the case for guidance to local authorities on this matter. The Department aims to publish, in the spring of this year, advice to local authorities on the new local transport funds announced as part of the Network North plan. The Department will provide updates to local authorities in due course. In the meantime, local authorities should continue to update their local transport plans as they see fit, giving regard to published national transport policy and local priorities.