Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps officials in her Department have taken to introduce a reciprocal driving licence exchange agreement with Kosovo.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Following a request from the Kosovan Embassy to consider a possible reciprocal driving licence exchange agreement, officials have carried out a full assessment of the information provided by the Kosovan authorities. This assessment concluded that driver testing and licensing arrangements in place in Kosovo are comparable with those in this country.
The department is now progressing the work required to achieve an exchange agreement. All driving licence exchange agreements are subject to a legally required public consultation and the introduction of the relevant legislation.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of noise cameras on road noise levels.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department conducted roadside trials of noise camera technology between October 2022 and February 2023. Reports of these trials, including detailed assessment of the technology’s performance and potential merits, were published on 17 March 2024.
The Secretary of State for Transport has not had discussions with local authorities on the use of noise cameras.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with local authorities on the use of noise cameras on roads.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department conducted roadside trials of noise camera technology between October 2022 and February 2023. Reports of these trials, including detailed assessment of the technology’s performance and potential merits, were published on 17 March 2024.
The Secretary of State for Transport has not had discussions with local authorities on the use of noise cameras.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he as made of the cost to individuals of replacing blue badges lost due to theft.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The Department sets the legislation that governs the Blue Badge scheme and provides guidance for local authorities who are solely responsible for administering the scheme.
Current legislation provides local authorities with the means to tackle abuse of the Blue Badge scheme locally, such as the power to retain and cancel badges found to be stolen.
Data on the number of Blue Badges stolen in the last 12 months are not currently available. The latest published statistics show that in the year ending 31st March 2023, 1700 Blue Badges were reported stolen in England. The figures reflect cases that have been recorded in the Blue Badge Digital Service database. It is possible that not all instances of loss or theft will be reported and recorded, and therefore will not be included in these figures.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has had recent discussions with the Home Office on the theft of blue badges.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The Department sets the legislation that governs the Blue Badge scheme and provides guidance for local authorities who are solely responsible for administering the scheme.
Current legislation provides local authorities with the means to tackle abuse of the Blue Badge scheme locally, such as the power to retain and cancel badges found to be stolen.
Data on the number of Blue Badges stolen in the last 12 months are not currently available. The latest published statistics show that in the year ending 31st March 2023, 1700 Blue Badges were reported stolen in England. The figures reflect cases that have been recorded in the Blue Badge Digital Service database. It is possible that not all instances of loss or theft will be reported and recorded, and therefore will not be included in these figures.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of blue badge thefts in the last 12 months.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The Department sets the legislation that governs the Blue Badge scheme and provides guidance for local authorities who are solely responsible for administering the scheme.
Current legislation provides local authorities with the means to tackle abuse of the Blue Badge scheme locally, such as the power to retain and cancel badges found to be stolen.
Data on the number of Blue Badges stolen in the last 12 months are not currently available. The latest published statistics show that in the year ending 31st March 2023, 1700 Blue Badges were reported stolen in England. The figures reflect cases that have been recorded in the Blue Badge Digital Service database. It is possible that not all instances of loss or theft will be reported and recorded, and therefore will not be included in these figures.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle licence plate cloning.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The Department for Transport understands how distressing this criminal activity can be for innocent motorists. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is currently working with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and other government departments to improve the identification and enforcement of number plate crime.
The law requires that anyone who supplies number plates for road use in the UK must be registered with the DVLA. It is a legal requirement for suppliers to carry out checks to ensure that number plates are only sold to those who can prove they are entitled to the registration number. Number plate suppliers must also keep records of the plates they have supplied.
The DVLA assist the police and Trading Standards in their enforcement against number plate suppliers who trade illegally. When notified, the DVLA will investigate and pass on intelligence to the police who are responsible for investigating this criminal matter.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has received any representations from Heathrow Airport Ltd on proposals to increase the number of air transport movements at that Airport.
Answered by Anthony Browne
The Department has received no recent representations from Heathrow Airport Ltd on proposals to increase the number of air transport movements at Heathrow Airport.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his planned timetable is for the publication of guidance for local authorities on 20mph speed limits.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The Department is finalising the details to the guidance update on setting local speed limits and in respect of 20mph speed limits, as announced in the Plan for Drivers. This will be published in due course.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 11 September 2023 to Question 196013, whether his Department plans to announce the successful applications for the Access for All funding by the end of 2023.
Answered by Huw Merriman
As part of our recent Network North announcement, the Government confirmed £350m will be made available to improve the accessibility of our train stations. We are assessing over 300 nominations for Access for All funding beyond 2024. At stations awarded funding this will create an obstacle free, accessible route from the station entrance to platforms. Successful nominations will be announced in due course.