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LORD CHANCELLOR'S DEPARTMENT
Late Payments
Mrs. Roche: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what percentage of bills were paid late by his Department in 1995-96. [26118]
Mr. Jonathan Evans: This information is being collated by the Department of Trade and Industry and will be published by my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade before the summer recess.
Mrs. Roche: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how much was paid late by his Department to the private sector for goods and services in 1995-96. [26152]
Mr. Evans: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
TRANSPORT
Rail Franchise Applicants
Ms Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what instructions he has issued to the franchising director on the eligibility to bid for rail franchises of companies that are under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office; and if he will make a statement. [25592]
Mr. Watts: The Railways Act 1993 requires that the franchising director should not invite any person to tender for franchises unless he is satisfied that they are financially robust, managerially competent and otherwise suitable to be a franchisee. In order to prequalify for franchise competitions, potential bidders are required to notify the franchising director of any factors which might affect his assessment of their suitability to be a franchisee. It is therefore unnecessary for my right hon. Friend to issue any instructions to the franchising director on this subject.
Temporary Speed Restrictions (Rail Track)
Ms Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the sections of rail track on the (a) west coast, (b) east coast, (c) Midland and (d) Great Western main lines currently subject to temporary speed restrictions due to the poor conditions of the track; and in each case, when it is estimated that these restrictions will be lifted. [25593]
Mr. Watts: The information required in not held centrally. I will write to the hon. Member when the information is available.
Pedestrians and Cyclists
Mr. Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what estimate he has made of the percentage of passenger kilometres that were (a) walked and (b) cycled in each year in Great Britain since 1979; [25402]
- (2) what estimate he has made of the number of miles (a) walked and (b) cycled in each year in Great Britain since 1979. [25401]
24 Apr 1996 : Column: 152
Mr. Norris: Figures for cycling based on table 9.1 of the 1995 "Transport Statistics Great Britain" are as follows:
| Distance cycled (billion passenger miles) | Percentage of all passenger miles exc. walking (per cent.) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 2.9 | 1.0 |
| 1980 | 3.2 | 1.0 |
| 1981 | 3.4 | 1.1 |
| 1982 | 4.0 | 1.3 |
| 1983 | 4.0 | 1.3 |
| 1984 | 4.0 | 1.2 |
| 1985 | 3.8 | 1.1 |
| 1986 | 3.4 | 1.0 |
| 1987 | 3.5 | 0.9 |
| 1988 | 3.2 | 0.8 |
| 1989 | 3.2 | 0.8 |
| 1990 | 3.3 | 0.8 |
| 1991 | 3.2 | 0.8 |
| 1992 | 2.9 | 0.7 |
| 1993 | 2.8 | 0.7 |
| 1994 | 2.7 | 0.6 |
Figures for walking are less reliable and available only for particular years. They are as follows:
| Distance walked (billion passenger miles) | Percentage of all passenger miles including walking (per cent.) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1975-76 | 14 | 5 |
| 1985-86 | 13 | 4 |
| 1989-91 | 13 | 3 |
| 1992-94 | 11 | 3 |
Rail Privatisation
Mr. Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much money he estimates (a) has been paid to date and (b) will be paid in the current financial year by the Government or Railtrack for advice and other assistance in connection with the sale of Railtrack to (1) SBC Warburg, (2) Linklaters and Paines, (3) Ernst and Young, (4) Solid Solutions Associates, (5) Freshfields, (6) Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher and Flom, (7) N. M. Rothschild & Sons Ltd., (8) Merrill Lynch International, (9) Simmons and Simmons, (10) Sullivan and Cromwell, (11) Deloitte and Touche, (12) Dewe Rogerson Ltd, and (13) the Royal Bank of Scotland plc (i) separately and (ii) in total. [25869]
Mr. Watts: Information about the payments to individual advisers is commercially confidential. However, as usual for major Government share sales, I expect to make an announcement about the total costs of the Railtrack flotation shortly after this has been completed.
Mr. Gorden Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what amendments were made to the draft prospectus for the privatisation of Railtrack following receipt of the views of the chairman of the British Railways Board. [26418]
Mr. Watts: At the time the chairman of the British Railways Board's views were received the Pathfinder prospectus was still being drafted. A number of changes have been made to the draft since the version on which
24 Apr 1996 : Column: 153
the chairman was expressing his views to take account of comments received from the British Railways Board and other interested parties.
Nuclear Energy
Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many shipments abroad by (a) sea or (b) air of mixed oxide fuel have taken place from the British Nuclear Fuels Ltd. Sellafield MOX plant since it opened; what safety licences are required for such transports; and if these transports are covered by (a) European Union legislation and (b) International Atomic Energy Agency or International Maritime Organisation guidelines. [26241]
Mr. Norris: There have been five such shipments by air, and none by sea.
All package designs for MOX fuel have to be approved to IAEA standards by the competent authority of the country of origin. Such approvals must be validated by the competent authorities of the countries through which the shipments pass.
The shipments complied with all relevant international transport regulations.
Mr. John Marshall:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when work is due to be completed on the A406 east of Falloden way. [26315]
Mr. Norris:
I have asked the chief executive of the Highways Agency to write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Lawrie Haynes to Mr. John Marshall, dated 24 April 1996:
Mr. Allen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps the DVLA takes to ensure delivery of drivers' licences to the correct addresses; and what use is made of recorded delivery. [26592]
Mr. Norris:
Delivery of driving licences is the responsibility of the Royal Mail. Recorded delivery is not used because it would delay the delivery of licences and increase costs.
Mr. Allen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many driving licences have been used fraudulently in each of the last five years. [26590]
Mr. Norris:
Some 2,000 fraudulent driving licence applications are identified each year, representing 0.1 per cent. of applications.
24 Apr 1996 : Column: 154
Mr. Tracey:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what financial objectives he has set for London Transport. [26918]
Mr. Norris:
I have written to Peter Ford, chairman of LT, to set new medium-term financial objectives for LT to achieve in 1998-99. These replace the objectives which came to an end on 31 March 1996. The package of new objectives sets challenging but achievable targets for the continued improvement in LT's financial performance and efficiency. The objectives are as follows:
As you know the Secretary of State for Transport has asked me to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the completion of the A406 London North Circular East of Falloden Way scheme.
Our current best estimate is that these works will be completed at the end of this year.
I shall let you know if that changes.
| All figures are at 1995-96 prices | Objective |
|---|---|
| Cost per train kilometre(1) | Not more than £9.45 |
| LUL gross margin(2) | At least £285 million |
| Bus subsidy per kilometre(3) | Not more than 6.0 pence |
| LT Buses gross loss(4) | Not more than £20 million |
| Group services etc.(5) gross loss | Not more than £21.5 million |
| Dial-a-Ride costs per trip | Not more than £9.40 |
| Property rental income growth | To be at least as good as the average shown by the IPD index (6) on three-year following basis |
(1) Costs per operated train kilometre to exclude depreciation, renewals, restructuring and PFI costs.
(2) LUL gross margin before depreciation, renewals, restructuring and PFI costs.
(3) Net subsidy per operated bus kilometre before depreciation, renewals, restructuring and PFI costs.
(4) LT Buses gross loss before depreciation, renewal, restructuring, and PFI costs.
(5) LT Group Services, plus Victoria coach station, unit for disabled passengers, PASS and LT museum.
(6) IPD is the Investment Property Databank index.
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