Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the answer to question 88126 on 17 November 2025, whether the environmental impact assessment for the review of the Airports National Policy Statement will include Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions specifically.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
As part of the Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS) review, the Secretary of State will carry out an Appraisal of Sustainability which will include a Strategic Environmental Assessment, which will consider greenhouse gas emissions.
As per the Appraisal of Sustainability for the existing ANPS, this will include consideration of emissions from the way people travel to and from the airport, as well as aircraft movements. It will be for individual promoters to submit Environmental Impact Assessments as part of any Development Consent Application in relation to Heathrow expansion.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will take steps to ensure that diesel vehicle manufacturers responsible for illegal emissions practices contribute to environmental remediation or compensation schemes.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government takes illegal emissions practices extremely seriously. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s Market Surveillance Unit (MSU) is investigating cases of possible non-compliant diesel emissions in cars and vans. The investigations aim to ensure any non-compliance found is fixed as soon as reasonably possible, working together with manufacturers to achieve real-world impacts on air quality.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she will publish environmental impact assessments for plans to expand (a) Heathrow, (b) Luton and (c) Gatwick airports that include Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
A scheme promoter is responsible for producing an environmental impact assessment, which includes an assessment of any likely significant climate factors. Both the Luton and Gatwick environmental impact assessments are available on the Planning Inspectorate’s website and were considered as part of the Secretary of State’s decision. For Heathrow, the applicant’s assessment and any mitigation measures they may put forward will be considered as part of the Secretary of State’s decision on an application.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the environmental impact assessment for the review of the Airports National Policy Statement will include Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The review of the Airports National Policy Statement will include a Strategic Environmental Assessment as part of the Appraisal of Sustainability. This will include consideration of greenhouse gas emissions.
A scheme promoter will then be responsible for producing an environmental impact assessment as part of the development consent order process and this will be considered as part of the Secretary of State’s decision on planning consent.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of international rail and sail through-ticketing that includes rail and ferry services.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
International rail and sail through-ticketing that includes rail and ferry services is a matter for the train operators and ferry operators. Under Great British Railways (GBR) there will be a less fragmented system and GBR will want to consider future ticketing decisions.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of airport expansion on tourism in coastal towns.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Airports are key gateways into the UK for international tourists and airport expansion will help to facilitate their ability to visit the United Kingdom, including our coastal towns.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of permitting crop-based biofuels to be eligible under the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Mandate on (a) the environment and (b) food security.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
In August 2025 the Secretary of State for Transport confirmed that a call for evidence on the eligibility of crops in the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Mandate would be published by the end of this year. This followed a call for evidence on the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO).
Crops encompass a variety of feedstocks with different impacts. It is right that we gather up-to-date evidence and information on emerging developments, including on the sustainability risks associated with crop-based Sustainable Aviation Fuel and how regulation could mitigate these risks.
The call for evidence does not propose any changes to the SAF Mandate nor does it signal the future direction of the SAF Mandate; it is intended to support assessment of the potential impacts, including on the environment and food security, of crop-based biofuels by the Department for Transport.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to allocate a proportion of support from the Revenue Support Mechanism to power-to-liquid fuel projects.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We recognise the importance of Revenue Certainty Mechanism (RCM) contracts supporting a range of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production technologies.
Power-to-liquid (PtL) SAF projects present significant opportunities for Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions reductions compared to fossil jet fuel, and this, along with other factors such as the cost of production for PtL SAF projects in the UK, is being considered as we design our approach to allocating RCM contracts. The Department will consult with industry in due course to gather stakeholder views on the approach to allocating RCM contracts.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 July 2025 to Question 66780 on Transport: Disability, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of supporting access panels to create a national network.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Sustrans Transforming Mobility Report recommends that local leaders, who best understand their communities, use access panels to engage disabled people in shaping, reviewing, and monitoring transport policies and projects. Paid access panels are one potential method for ensuring meaningful involvement.
The government recognises that accessibility improvements require collaboration across national and local authorities, transport operators, and industry. Central to this effort is the voice of disabled people. For nearly 40 years, the Department for Transport has led by example, being advised by the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee, which mandates that at least half its members are disabled.
More broadly, the government is committed to making public transport more inclusive, enabling disabled people to travel safely, confidently, and with dignity. As part of this commitment, it is working with disabled people’s organisations, service providers, and stakeholders to develop an Accessible Transport Charter. This charter will set out clear, shared commitments based on the principles of accessible and inclusive travel.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will publish an update of recent progress in meeting the objectives of the second cycling and walking investment strategy.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The latest National Travel Survey figures published on the 27th August revealed that in 2024 43 percent of short journeys in towns and cities were walked or cycled; 339 walking stages were walked per person; the estimated total number of cycling stages was 0.94 billion stages and 51% of children aged 5 to 10 reported usually walking to school.