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 6 July 2026 to Question 15004 on Airports: Fees and Charges, what modelling or projections her Department has undertaken of the potential impact of Government requirements relating to airport surface access on (a) airport drop-off charges and (b) airport parking charges.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
UK airports are responsible for developing and maintaining their own surface access strategies in collaboration with local communities and stakeholders, reflecting local needs, transport networks and future development plans. In some cases, specific surface access targets may be considered through the planning process as part of airport expansion proposals.
Assessing the impact of surface access measures would generally be a matter for the airport operator and, where relevant, the planning authority.
However, the Government recognises concerns about the impact of airport drop-off charges on airport users and we are considering how any such review of this might be taken forward.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans she has for the Traffic Distribution Rules 1991 following the Civil Aviation Authority's review of those Rules; and when she expects to make a decision on this.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is currently undertaking its review of the 1991 Traffic Distribution Rules after consulting stakeholders more widely. Once the review has concluded and the CAA has provided its advice, the government will give this careful consideration before determining next steps.
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 7 September 2026 to WPQ 26656, if her Department will make such an assessment.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has no plans to make such an assessment.
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 July 2026 to Question 17043 on Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency: Correspondence, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of requiring the DVSA to respond to 100% of simple enquiry emails within five working days.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) aims to respond to customer correspondence as quickly as possible and prioritises enquiries to ensure urgent or complex matters are handled appropriately. While simple enquiries are generally expected to be resolved more quickly, setting a 100% target could risk diverting resources from more complex or time-sensitive cases and may not take account of periods of exceptionally high demand.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) internal target to respond to 90% of simple enquiry emails within five working days was met in 2025/26.
DVSA continues to monitor correspondence performance and keeps its customer service standards under review to ensure they remain effective, proportionate and deliverable.
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 6 July 2026 to Question 15009 on Roads: Construction, whether the cancellation of the National Highways contract with Skanska for the A46 Newark Bypass was taken into account when preparing that Answer.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Yes.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which Ministers in her Department attended the Farnborough International Airshow 2026; on which dates each Minister attended; and what meetings each Minister held during the event.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
No Ministers from the Department attended the Farnborough International Airshow in 2026. A Minister had been scheduled to attend but because of the Government reshuffle the same week this was no longer possible because Ministerial portfolios and responsibilities had not been confirmed.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of rail journeys used fully digital tickets in each month since May 2026.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The approximate proportion of tickets fulfilled as Digital Tickets since May 2026 are:
| May-26 | Jun-26 | Jul-26 | Aug-26 |
Digital | 86% | 84% | 86% | 85% |
Non Digital | 14% | 16% | 14% | 15% |
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 13 July 2026 to Question 16605 on Parking Offences: Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, when the trial of higher-level Penalty Charge Notices in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole is expected to conclude; and whether her Department plans to publish an assessment of the outcome of that trial.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council (BCP) concluded its trial of higher-level penalty charge notices at the end of August 2026. The publication, or otherwise, of its assessment will be a matter for BCP.
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 6 July 2026 to Question 14998 on British Overseas Territories, what was the total cost to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency of each of the 10 monitoring visits to British Overseas Territories since 4 July 2024, broken down by (a) travel, (b) accommodation and (c) other expenses.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
I refer the Right Hon Member to Question 17595 answered on 2 September 2026.
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 10 July 2026 to Question 15008 on Train Operating Companies: Finance, what assessment she has made of the reasons for passenger revenue being lower than forecast in 2025-2026 financial year.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
I refer the Rt Hon member to the Answer of 10 July 2026 to Question 15008.