Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate her Department has made of the level of financial liability and mitigation costs required for Network Rail to meet its 2030 target under its Environmental Sustainability Strategy; and how much and what proportion of this funding is allocated toward the remediation of historic pollution sites along the rail lineside.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total cost to her Department is of the development, delivery, and accreditation of Carbon Literacy Project training since 2020; and if she will provide a breakdown of these costs for (a) Department for Transport core staff, (b) High Speed Two (HS2) Ltd, and (c) the 'Carbon Literacy for Rail' programme.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what her planned timetable is for the (a) recruitment of additional drivers for (i) Thameslink and (ii) Great Northern Railway this year and (b) completion of training of those drivers and deployment onto active services.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which 10 (a) railway lines and (b) station sections recorded the highest number of trespass incidents in 2025; and what physical security measures are being deployed at those hotspots.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to align UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) maritime rules with the EU ETS to help prevent duplication, distortion, or regulatory complexity for operators.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government recognises the importance of minimising unnecessary complexity for operators.
The UK ETS maritime rules have been designed with regard to international practice and interactions with other schemes. We have designed our digital systems in conjunction with industry to support operators to comply with the scheme, introducing as much automation as possible and reduce the administrative burden on operators.
We will continue to engage with industry and international partners to understand implications for operators once the expansion launches on 1 July 2026.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate her Department has made of the total annual operating costs of public sector companies succeeding private franchises under the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill ; and if she will provide a breakdown of how the funds currently recovered from private Train Operating Companies for the British Transport Police budget will be accounted for within the financial implications of the Bill.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
As train operating companies move into public ownership they will continue to enter into Police Service Agreements (PSAs) with the British Transport Police Authority (BTPA), and we do not expect any change to the existing funding arrangements. The BTPA will continue to allocate policing costs to operators using its cost allocation model.
Since the start of the COVID pandemic, the costs of operating franchised passenger services have been borne by taxpayers, not by private train operators. As a result, public ownership does not in itself create a new funding pressure in relation to British Transport Police costs, and no additional financial assistance is expected beyond costs determined through the Authority’s usual annual allocation process.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the Government public awareness campaign entitled Millions got a pay rise, what is the total budget for the communications campaign, and over what period; what communications channels have been used; what external agencies have been contracted; and what was the process by which the communications campaign was signed off under communications spending controls.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The 2025 National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage campaign ran from 1 April to 31 May 2025 with a total budget of £650,000. The objective was to ensure workers understood their new pay entitlement to prevent underpayment. The agencies Pablo Unlimited, Wavemaker and OMD were used to support the delivery of this campaign. This campaign was approved under Cabinet Office’s advertising, marketing and communications spending controls. Communication channels used were:
The Department for Business and Trade has not run any paid campaign on the national minimum wage and national living wage in 2026.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress Northern has made on upgrading train sanding systems to improve braking performance since 17 December 2025; how many older units have been fitted with variable-rate sanding equipment to date; and whether the project remains on track for completion by autumn 2028.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Sanding systems installed per month since December 2025 are as follows:
December: 23
Jan: 0
Feb 0
March: 3
April: 0
Since 1 March 2020, 32 older Northern units have been fitted with variable rate sanding systems.
The sanding improvement programme continues to progress and remains on track for completion by autumn 2028.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 9 January 2026 to Question 100955, if she will provide a breakdown of the programmes Network Rail is undertaking to achieve its Net Zero target; and what the estimated cost to the public purse is of those programmes.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Network Rail has set a strategic target to contribute to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2045 (Scotland) and 2050 (England and Wales). Although Rail is already one the lowest-carbon methods of travel we are committed to reducing our own carbon emissions and encouraging passengers and freight away from more carbon intensive methods of travel.
To play its part Network Rail is committed to minimise its reliance on fossil fuels and reduce its carbon emissions and it has a large number of projects, programmes and workstreams being delivered - please see Network Rail’s Greener Railway Strategy (https://greener.networkrail.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Greener-Railway-Strategy_May-2025.pdf) for more information on these.
The costs of achieving net zero are spread across a large number of areas, including dedicated resources, specific projects and programmes, embedded into existing workstreams and more. They are also spread across numerous control periods. As such Network Rail is unable to provide an estimated cost, but all works are planned to be as efficient and cost effective as possible.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 9 January 2026 to Question 100955, if she will provide a breakdown of programmes the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency is undertaking to decarbonise its driving test centre and vehicle inspection estate by 2050; and what total funding has been allocated to these schemes.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
To decarbonise its operational estate the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) will:
Rationalise its current estate:
Refurbish sites to remove gas and install renewable technologies:
The total cost to complete refurbishment for ten MPTCs this year is £6,040,836, which includes decarbonisation measures.
Approximately £10 million per annum is planned for estates investment across the remainder of the medium long-term Plan/Spending Review period, this is total investment funding, including decarbonisation works which will be prioritised in line with DVSA’s published sustainability strategy available on GOV.UK.