Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his policy is on the introduction of a toll on Hammersmith Bridge as part of efforts to finance the strengthening works.
Answered by Huw Merriman
It is for the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham – the asset owner and lead for the Hammersmith Bridge project – to make suggestions of this sort, which will be considered in the usual way.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an estimate of when Hammersmith Bridge will be reopened to (a) buses, (b) emergency service vehicles and (c) cars.
Answered by Huw Merriman
Hammersmith Bridge is expected to be reopened to all forms of motor vehicle following the completion of the second, ‘Strengthening’ stage of works. The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham – as the owner and lead for the Hammersmith Bridge project – has produced a business case for the second stage of works, which is currently being considered by the Government. The schedule for the ‘Strengthening’ works is under development.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's planned timetable is for the reopening of the Hammersmith Bridge carriageway to cyclists.
Answered by Huw Merriman
As the asset owner and project lead, decisions regarding the reopening of the Hammersmith Bridge is for the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham to make.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's planned timetable is for (a) its consideration of and (b) announcing its decision on the business case for the strengthening and restoration of Hammersmith Bridge.
Answered by Huw Merriman
The issue is being considered carefully and an announcement will be made in due course.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress has been made on the stabilisation works on Hammersmith Bridge.
Answered by Huw Merriman
The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham reports that the stabilisation works are progressing well and are now nearing completion.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many settlement payments his Department issued following claims of (a) bullying, (b) harassment and (c) discrimination in the (i) 2019-20 (ii) 2020-21, (iii) 2021-22 and (iv) 2022-23 financial years.
Answered by Anthony Browne
Reports generated from the Civil Service Casework Management Application database state that there were no settlement payments made in relation to cases with either bullying and/or harassment recorded as a reason for the case in the financial years 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22 or 2022-23. In relation to cases where discrimination was referenced in the reasons for the case, one settlement payment was made in 2019-20 and two were made in 2022-23. There are no other records of settlement payments for discrimination in either 2020-21 or 2021-22.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether there have been any power cuts on their Department's property in each of the last three years.
Answered by Anthony Browne
There have been 3 power cuts recorded in the central department. We do not regularly record the details across all the sites of the Executive Agencies.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what data their Department holds on the (a) number and (b) cost of replacing (i) laptops, (ii) mobile phones, (iii) memory sticks and (iv) external hard drives that have been (A) lost and (B) stolen in the last 12 months.
Answered by Anthony Browne
The response below covers the central Department and the five Executive Agencies: VCA, DVLA, MCGA, ATE and DVSA. Please note: DfT(c) handle all IT devices for Active Travel England (ATE) and so these figures are included in the DfT(c) figures.
(a,i,A) The number of lost laptops was 30.
(a,ii,A) The number of lost mobile phones was 86.
(a,i,B) The number of stolen laptops was 24.
(a,ii,B) the number of stolen mobile phones was 20.
(b,i,A) the cost of replacing lost laptops was between £1185 incl VAT and £1856.40 incl VAT, per item.
(b,ii,A) the cost of replacing lost mobile phones was between £240 incl VAT and £790.78 incl VAT, per item.
(b,i,B) the cost of replacing stolen laptops was between £1185 and £1856.40 incl VAT, per item.
(b,ii,B) the cost of replacing stolen mobile phones was between £240 incl VAT and £790.78 incl VAT, per item..
(iii and iv) we do not issue memory sticks or external hard drives, so do not hold data on them.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential (a) likelihood of flight delays for over two hours at Heathrow Airport in December 2023 and (b) impact of flights delays on trends in the level of night flights to and from that airport; and whether he plans to take steps to ensure that that airport does not exceed its night flight restrictions.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
Heathrow Airport operates in the private sector and is responsible for managing its own performance. It has its own specific target to reduce the number of nights with late-running operations. The Department will continue to work closely with Heathrow throughout the winter season to understand the plans it has in place to manage passenger demand.
The Department also closely monitors night movements at Heathrow Airport to ensure compliance with night flight restrictions set by the Secretary of State.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to page 3 of Stakeholder Engagement Appendix G, Heathrow's Airspace Modernisation (FASI South) Stage 2 Gateway submission, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential ecological impact of diverting flight paths over Richmond Park.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The airspace modernisation programme is an important national infrastructure project that aims to deliver quicker, quieter and cleaner journeys for the benefit of those who use and are affected by UK airspace.
All sponsors of airspace change must follow the Civil Aviation Authority's regulatory requirements as set out in airspace change process (CAP1616). CAP1616 requires sponsors to undertake comprehensive environmental assessments for airspace options that are under consideration. The requirements of CAP1616 can be scaled up or down depending on the nature and impacts of the airspace change proposal.
Heathrow airport is currently at Stage 2 of the CAP1616 process. Heathrow needs to pass through the Stage 2 gateway before it can progress to Stage 3. It is at that stage that the sponsors of permanent airspace change proposals will undertake a full options appraisal before undertaking a formal public consultation with all interested stakeholders, including local communities.