| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
London Underground
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the methodology behind the Department's estimates of capacity on each London Underground line. [67792]
Mr. Jamieson [holding answer 8 July 2002]: My Department does not make estimates of capacity of London Underground lines.
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many non-operational (a) lifts and (b) escalators there are on the London Underground Network; at which stations they are found; and what the estimated resulting loss in station capacity is in each case. [67719]
Mr. Jamieson [holding answer 8 July 2002]: This is an operational matter for London Underground (LU) who have provided the information in the table detailing non-operational (a) lifts and (b) escalators, as at 28 June 2002. I understand that LU do not make estimates of the loss of station capacity in such cases.
| Station | Number of machines out of service |
|---|---|
| Baker Street | 1 |
| Bank | 2 |
| Bethnal Green | 1 |
| Bond Street | 1 |
| Embankment | 1 |
| Euston | 1 |
| Green Park | 1 |
| Heathrow 1, 2, 3 | 1 |
| Holborn | 1 |
| Kentish Town | 1 |
| Kilburn Park | 1 |
| Kings Cross | 1 |
| Knightsbridge | 1 |
| Liverpool Street | 2 |
| Maida Vale | 1 |
| Notting Hill Gate | 2 |
| Old Street | 1 |
| Piccadilly Circus | 1 |
| Total | 21 |
10 Jul 2002 : Column 989W
| Station | Number of machines out of service |
|---|---|
| Elephant and Castle | 2 |
| North Greenwich | 1 |
| Russell Square | 1 |
| Stratford | 1 |
| West Ham | 1 |
| Total | 6 |
Note:
The number of lifts and escalators not in service can vary from hour to hour in the case of short-term faults.
Northern Line
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the maximum number of people allowed (a) on each platform and (b) in each station is for each station on the Northern Line, as determined by health and safety limits. [67715]
Mr. Jamieson [holding answer 8 July 2002]: London Underground inform me that there is no formal limit on the number of customers allowed on each platform. They monitor closely the numbers of customers in stations and on platforms and take appropriate action to ensure their safety.
Merseyrail
Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the franchising process for Merseyrail; and what progress has been made. [68205]
Mr. Jamieson: The refranchising process for Merseyrail Electrics is currently being run jointly by the Strategic Rail Authority and Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive. Six bidders successfully prequalified for the competition. Initial bids are due on 12 July.
Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on rolling stock replacement on Merseyrail. [69120]
Mr. Jamieson: Proposals for rolling stock replacement on the Merseyrail Electrics network will be considered as part of the franchise/local concession replacement process currently under way.
Railtrack
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what tax liability Railtrack Group will incur as a result of the Railtrack plc disposal announced on 27 June. [66497]
Mr. Jamieson [holding answer 2 July 2002]: I refer the hon. Member to paragraph 25 of the minute in relation to non-statutory contingent liabilities in support of Network Rail Limited which the Secretary of State laid before the House of Commons on 27 June.
Speeding Offences
Mr. Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many motorists in Lancashire and Burnley have been charged with speeding in a 30-mile-per-hour speed limit in the last 12 months. [65779]
Mr. Denham: I have been asked to reply.
10 Jul 2002 : Column 990W
Information on numbers of persons charged with an offence is not collated centrally. The data available centrally on prosecutions and fixed penalties issued for speeding offences are not broken down according to the speed limits that have been broken.
PRIME MINISTER
Departmental Changes
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the cost of replacing the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Department of Transport; and if he will make a statement. [67436]
The Prime Minister: The new Departments will share the provision previously made for the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions. No additional funds have been made available in the current year as a result of the machinery of government change.
Nuclear Power Programme (Russia)
Llew Smith: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his oral statement of 1 July 2002, Official Report, column 21, on G7 nuclear management aid for Russia, how much of the $750 million commitment by the United Kingdom will be spent on the conversion of surplus military plutonium into MOX nuclear fuel for Russia's nuclear power programme. [68451]
The Prime Minister: The figure includes the commitment of £70 million over 10 years, which I announced at the G8 Okinawa summit in 2000, in support of the US/Russian agreement on secure disposition of plutonium no longer required for defence purposes.
Parliamentary Questions
Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister (1) whether special advisers are permitted to amend draft answers to written parliamentary questions prepared by civil servants in order to add a political dimension; [67694]
- (2) if he will describe the stages in the administrative process followed in his Office following the receipt of a written parliamentary question prior to the final answer being provided to the hon. Member. [67695]
The Prime Minister: As far as I am aware my Office follows the same administrative process for written parliamentary questions as used by my predecessors.
My parliamentary section identifies the questions from the Order Paper tabled to me. The section will then draft answers in consultation with other Downing Street staff, including special advisers, or commission answers from other Departments as appropriate. They are cleared by a senior civil servant and then sent to me for approval.
All answers are provided in accordance with the Ministerial Code, the Civil Service Code and the Special Adviser Code of Conduct.
Sellafield
Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister how many representations he has received since 1 January 2001 regarding Sellafield; and what steps he has taken as a consequence. [67640]
10 Jul 2002 : Column 991W
The Prime Minister: Since January 2001 I have received over 187,000 letters and cards, including a very large number of pre-printed postcards as a result of a campaign organised in Ireland in April and May 2002. I have also had discussions with the Prime Ministers of Norway and Ireland about Sellafield issues.
The hon. Member will be aware that the Government published a White Paper on 4 July 2002 setting out our plans for dealing with the UK's nuclear legacy including the operation and clean-up of the Sellafield site.
Summits
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 3 July 2002, Official Report, column 330W, on summits, for what reason it was not possible for him to state the budget for the trip to the G8 summit in June and the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in March. [68655]
The Prime Minister: A detailed list of Cabinet Ministers' visits overseas, and information on spend by all Ministers on travel overseas for the period 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2002 will be published as soon as possible. The list for the period 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003 will be published after the end of the current financial year.
EDUCATION AND SKILLS
Secondary Schools
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what organisations delivering and resourcing personal, social and health education in secondary schools receive funding from central Government sources; and how much was given to each in the last year for which figures are available. [66709]
Mr. Miliband: The Department for Education and Skills funds a number of organisations to support the delivery of PSHE in schools. In 2002–03, the following funding has been allocated:
- The National Children's Bureau (including the Drug Education and Sex Education Forum), to promote good practice—£245,250
The Personal Finance Education Group, to support financial literacy—£10,000
The National Health Education Group, to support a network for PSHE practitioners—£14,000
Child Accident Prevention Trust, to support Child Safety Week—£17,000
BRAKE, to support Road Safety Week—£10,000
Drug Education Practitioner's Forum, to support the professional needs of drug education workers—£11,150
Jointly with the Department of Health, the Drug Education and Prevention Team at DrugScope/Alcohol Concern to promote good practice—£106,300.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |