Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on reducing the number and frequency of roadworks.

Ministers regularly discuss a range of issues with their counterparts in other Government departments. Utility companies have a right of access to the highway to install and repair the apparatus on which we all rely. Highway authorities have duties to coordinate works on their networks and to secure the expeditious movement of traffic. The Government has introduced a number of initiatives, such as the development of Street Manager, and regulatory changes all designed to improve the efficiency of how works are carried out.