Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) Notices to Improve and (b) written instructions her Department issued to train operating companies for which the Department is the operator in relation to (i) service performance and (ii) financial control in December 2025.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has not issued any Notices to Improve on any of the DfT Operator train operating companies in December 2025 because none have been in breach of their formal contractual terms.
The DfT regularly engages with all operators on service performance and financial management, aligned with this Government's priorities on improving performance and reducing subsidy.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what evidential basis her Department has concluded that the majority of passengers benefit from the long-distance simplified ticketing trials.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has commissioned independent evaluation on the trial, this research has not yet concluded.
The current evidence is provided by LNER and is available at https://assets.ctfassets.net/mxack5k9p2sw/6k2Evw4OmGsvywKgBg9U9j/e63a4ca09d2c4e01fada29f731d90f7b/Simpler_Fares_LNER_Website_Copy_Enhanced_Sept_2025.pdf .
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 December 2025 to Question 96696 on Roads: Biodiversity, what estimate she has made of the average cost for each Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project of (a) voluntarily delivering biodiversity net gain (BNG) prior to May 2026, (b) delivering BNG on a compulsory basis during the third Road Period and (c) delivering BNG overall for schemes (i) currently under construction or (ii) in the delivery pipeline.
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 Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many bus passenger journeys were taken in (a) London and (b) England outside London in each month from January 2023 for which data is available.
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 Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which driving test centres were at 24 weeks wait times in December 2025.
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 Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 17 December 2025 to Question 96800, on what dates each HS2 environmental assessment published since 4 July 2024 was published, and to provide a link to each document, in accordance with the Cabinet Office guidance on transparency.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
HS2 Environmental Assessments published since 4 July 2024 are available on www.gov.uk alongside their corresponding publication dates here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hs2-environmental-sustainability-progress-report
- https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sei-reports-for-new-significant-environmental-effects-on-the-hs2-phase-one-route
- https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/monitoring-the-environmental-effects-of-hs2-2025
- https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/monitoring-the-environmental-effects-of-hs2-2024
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions her Department has had with Basildon Borough Council on the (a) proposed 27,000 home increase in the Borough and (b) potential impact of that increase on demand for C2C and Greater Anglia services.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We expect operators to work with local stakeholders, including local councils such as Basildon Borough Council, in relation to housing developments and their potential increase on demand for rail services. Estimates of future demand are being used to inform strategic planning across the Essex Thameside area, with collaboration across operators, Network Rail and local stakeholders such as councils.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether contracts for new rolling stock for Northern are expected to be signed in 2027.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
It is anticipated that Northern’s new rolling stock contract could be signed in 2027, subject to the completion of Northern’s current live procurement.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Northern trains have had sanding systems upgraded in each month since January 2024.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The number of Northern trains that have had sanding systems upgraded in each month since January 2024 is set out in the table below.
Jan-24 | 7 |
Feb-24 | 21 |
Mar-24 | 65 |
Apr-24 | 116 |
May-24 | 20 |
Jun-24 | 5 |
Jul-24 | 7 |
Aug-24 | 74 |
Sep-24 | 68 |
Oct-24 | 21 |
Nov-24 | 1 |
Dec-24 | 1 |
Jan-25 | 0 |
Feb-25 | 1 |
Mar-25 | 3 |
Apr-25 | 0 |
May-25 | 8 |
Jun-25 | 14 |
Jul-25 | 43 |
Aug-25 | 58 |
Sep-25 | 59 |
Oct-25 | 40 |
Nov-25 | 40 |
Dec-25 | 23 |
Figures up to 31 December 2025
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the expected completion date is for Southeastern’s rolling stock procurement process.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Southeastern rolling stock procurement is currently live and is subject to evaluation and all necessary governance for approvals. We are unable to confirm exact timescales due to the confidential nature of the live procurement, but subject to business case approval, it is anticipated that the contract award will be in 2026. Southeastern will keep all stakeholders informed as this progresses.