Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate she has made of the public expenditure required for supporting rail, road and other surface-access improvements connected with Heathrow expansion.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Any expansion at Heathrow Airport, would be privately financed, including any required surface access improvements. The draft Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement requires any promoter of expansion to meet the full cost of associated works to the strategic and local road network and to develop a surface access strategy setting out how transport improvements, including any rail schemes needed to support the required mode share targets, will be funded.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate she has made of the cost of relocating or rebuilding the M25 and other affected roads as part of any Heathrow expansion project.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government has been clear that if Heathrow expansion proceeds it will be privately financed. Any works required to the strategic or local road networks, including the M25, would form part of the promoter’s cost estimates for its scheme. The costs of such works will depend on the final scheme design brought forward by the promoter and would be subject to scrutiny through the development consent process.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has independently verified Heathrow Airport Limited’s projected cost of expansion.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The draft Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement (HENPS) makes clear that potential promoters should seek to minimise costs where possible. Given the long-term nature of the expansion programme and significant costs that will likely be involved, the Government will consider the affordability of any proposed expansion scheme as part of the Development Consent Order planning process.
Responsibility for scrutinising the efficiency of expansion costs, including those proposed by Heathrow Airport Limited, sits with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) as the independent economic regulator. The Department continues to work closely with the CAA as it develops the regulatory framework for expansion and considers the appropriate arrangements for cost scrutiny and oversight.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of Heathrow expansion on passenger charges, airline ticket prices and the competitiveness of regional airports.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government recognises the importance of keeping air travel affordable for passengers and airlines. Heathrow's airport charges are regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which has a statutory duty to further the interests of users of air transport services. In setting Heathrow's regulatory framework, the CAA considers the impact of airport charges on consumers and seeks to ensure that such charges are justified.
The Government also supports competition across the UK aviation sector, including at regional airports, and supports regional air connectivity through a range of measures, such as Public Service Obligations. The potential impacts of Heathrow expansion on passengers, airlines and connectivity are considered through the relevant regulatory and planning processes. Relevant analysis was published alongside the consultation on the draft Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement, including forecasts of passenger numbers and aircraft movements.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if the government will set out a timeline for the introduction of the Clean Water Bill.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Clean Water Bill was announced as part of the second Parliamentary session in the King’s Speech on 13 May. The Bill will implement many of the reforms outlined in the Government’s ‘New Vision for Water’ White Paper, published on 20 January. The Bill will be introduced when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many emergency workers have died by suicide each year since 2015.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Every suicide is a tragedy that has devastating and enduring impacts on families, friends and communities. The Government recognises the demanding nature of working in emergency settings, and that staff may require more complex mental wellbeing support due to the traumatic nature of their jobs. National Health Service staff are able to access mental health support through their general practice, as well as support provided by their employer through employee assistance programmes or occupational health. NHS England also offers a range of health and wellbeing resources including the Practitioner Health service that provides specialist mental health support.
The Department does not hold this data. Data relating to numbers of suicides in England and Wales are published regularly by the Office of National Statistics (ONS). ONS occasionally also publishes ad hoc analysis of suicide numbers by standard occupational classifications. Whilst this data does not allow identification of the employer, such as the NHS, it does present suicide numbers by broad occupation categories. The latest ad hoc publication is available at the following link:
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the cost per megalitre of water produced over an eighty-year lifespan of Teddington Direct River Abstraction.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Teddington Direct River Abstraction (TDRA) project is being developed as a scheme intended to operate intermittently, during periods of drought, rather than as a continuously operating water supply source. The actual volume of water that TDRA may provide over an eighty-year period would depend on future drought frequency, severity, operational requirements and planning assumptions over that period.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of indirect potable reuse schemes in improving London’s water supply resilience.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Water reuse (water recycling) plays a key role in helping to improve water supply resilience.
Water companies have a statutory duty to provide a secure supply of water for customers and set out how they plan to continue to supply water to their customers through statutory Water Resources Management Plans (WRMPs).
Where selected in WRMPs, indirect potable reuse (water recycling) schemes have been fully assessed to ensure they form part of the best package of options across a region to manage supplies. They are subject to ongoing assessment through the Regulators’ Alliance for Progressing Infrastructure Development (RAPID) programme to ensure appropriate design and permit.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the efficacy of an indirect potable reuse schemes for direct discharge to reservoirs as an environment buffer.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Indirect potable reuse (water recycling) uses an environmental buffer before abstracting water into drinking water treatment and supply. This environmental buffer can be a reservoir. There are few schemes in operation currently, but water recycling will play an increasingly important role in meeting future demand.
Water companies planning to utilise water recycling to supplement their raw water are required to ensure that all regulatory requirements in the drinking water quality legislation are met at all times, to ensure that the drinking water supply remains wholesome. The Drinking Water Inspectorate issued guidance for companies on this matter.
Water companies are required to assess the risk of any new raw water sources and review and update their Drinking Water Safety Plans to ensure that these risks have been assessed and mitigations, such as additional treatment, are put in place if required.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the efficacy of an indirect potable reuse scheme which would take treated sewage from Mogden Sewage Treatment Works, process it using an advanced water recycling plant using reverse osmosis to remove PFAS, and discharge the treated water into the Queen Mary Reservoir for subsequent treatment to potable water by a water treatment works.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Water companies explore a wide range of options, and variants of those options, through the Water Resources Management Planning process. Many of these are not taken forward due to technical, practical, or cost considerations. Any new water recycling schemes for water supply must be included by water companies in their preferred Water Resources Management Plans and developed by the company. Schemes taken forward must secure environmental permits from the Environment Agency, including water quality permits that include conditions to manage impacts from any discharge to the environment.
The Drinking Water Inspectorate carried out a research project published last year outlining that ‘reverse osmosis (RO) and nano filtration (NF) provide a near absolute barrier for passage of PFAS compounds when operated correctly’.