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13 May 2004 : Column 490W—continued

Dual Carriageways (Nottinghamshire)

Mr. Kenneth Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the construction of the A46 dual carriageway improvement between Newark and Widmerpool in Nottinghamshire to begin. [171518]

 
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Dr. Howells: The future programme depends on funding and how quickly the various statutory processes can be completed but we currently expect that start of works will be in 2007 with the road opening to traffic in 2009.

Mr. Kenneth Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the construction of the A453 dual carriageway improvement between Clifton in Nottinghamshire and Kegworth to begin. [171519]

Dr. Howells: The future programme depends on funding and how quickly the various statutory processes can be completed but we currently expect that start of works will be in 2008–09 with the road opening to traffic in 2011.

East-West Rail Route

Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the Government's policy on the proposed Western Section (Oxford to Bedford) of the East-West Rail route. [172170]

Mr. McNulty: The East-West Rail Consortium (a group of local authorities along the route, working in partnership with the regional assembly and the regional development agencies) has now put forward an updated business case for the Bedford to Bletchley section of the East West Rail Link. This proposal involves upgrading and re-opening the line between Oxford and Bedford. Officials at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister are considering the updated business case, particularly in light of the potential impact of the scheme on the delivery of the Sustainable Communities Plan. The Strategic Rail Authority is also considering the Bedford to Bletchley business case. Any appraisal will need to be considered against other priorities—and in the context of the financial constraints on the industry at the present time.

Light Rapid Transit

Mr. Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will make an announcement of his decision on the Light Rapid Transit project between Fareham, Gosport and Portsmouth. [172376]

Mr. McNulty: A decision will be announced in due course.

London Underground PPP

Mr. Clapham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which management consultants undertook work for (a) his Department and its predecessor and (b) London Underground in respect of the London Underground Public Private Partnership; and if he will list the total payments in each management consultancy company. [171222]

Mr. McNulty: During procurement of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) the Department and London Underground made joint use of external advisers wherever possible to keep costs to a minimum. Management consultants used on the PPP were PricewaterhouseCoopers, Arthur Andersen, PA Consulting, KPMG, Hornagold & Hills and Ernst & Young. The value of work done by individual consultants and advisers is commercially confidential.
 
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London Underground's total expenditure for all external advice on the PPP—including management consultancy, legal, financial, engineering and operational advice—was £103.5 million. The Department had separately spent £1.5 million on external advice.

MOT Computerisation

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in the testing of   the MOT computerisation system by VOSA and Siemens Business Systems. [172132]

Mr. Jamieson: Siemens Business Services have fully completed four cycles of Main System Test and are in the process of completing a fifth. Trial stage 1 (VOSA Acceptance Testing) is due to begin on 21 June 2004.

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made with the planned two-month volunteer MOT trial at 50 garages. [172133]

Mr. Jamieson: Trials at 45 stations are due to begin on 2 August 2004.

Volunteers have been sought and applicants are being sifted. Those who have been selected to conduct these initial trials will be notified shortly

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the MOT computerisation programme will be installed in 1,000 MOT garages as planned; when the service is due to go live; and when it will be rolled out to other MOT garages. [172134]

Mr. Jamieson: The service is due to be rolled out and trialled in 1,000 MOT stations from, 27 September 2004 onwards. These stations will trial the service in parallel with, operating the current test administration protocols.

The service is due to be rolled out to all MOT stations, and go live, from 29 November 2004.

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the planned series of MOT computerisation seminars will take place; and what these seminars are planned to do. [172135]

Mr. Jamieson: VOSA runs a series of national MOT seminars each year. The subject of the 2004 round of seminars was MOT Computerisation; they took place between January and April. The seminars facilitate two-way communications between VOSA and the trade on issues relating to MOT testing. No further seminars are planned before roll-out starts to all stations.

Productivity and Costs

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is for (a) increasing the productivity and (b) cutting the costs of (i) his Department and (ii) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies. [172182]

Mr. McNulty: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury on 10 May 2004, Official Report, columns 148–49W. The Department for Transport has been working on proposals to meet the Chancellor's efficiency target. These proposals will be finalised as part of the 2004 Spending Review.
 
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Public Transport (Wirral, South)

Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the effect of investment in railway improvements over the next 10 years upon residents of Wirral South. [172693]

Mr. McNulty: Merseyrail which operates local services in Wirral, South is a consistently high performer. Residents of Wirral, South will also benefit from the West Coast Main Line upgrade and the new TransPennine Express franchise to make fast inter-city journeys out of Liverpool. The TransPennine Express franchise, which commenced in February secures investment of around £260 million, which will include the introduction of a new fleet of 100 mph diesel trains leading to increased capacity, improved service quality and performance across the region.

Railway Crimes

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many crimes of a sexual nature were committed on the railways in each year since 1997. [171910]

Mr. McNulty: The British Transport Police (BTP) have provided the following information on how many crimes of a sexual nature were committed on the railways in each year since 1997:
Total number of offences recorded

	England and Wales	Scotland
1997–98	719	37
1998–99	1,185	29
1999–2000	1,079	34
2000–01	1,009	31
2001–02	1,020	34
2002–03	1,003	29
2003–04	1,120	36

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many arrests have been made by the British Transport Police on railway property in each year since 1997. [171911]

Mr. McNulty: The British Transport Police (BTP) have provided the following information on arrests made on railway property in each year since 1999; information is not readily available for earlier than 1999.

	Total number of arrests
1999–2000	6,393
2000–01	6,788
2001–02	7,049
2002–03	7,434
2003–04	8,151

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many arrests have been made by the British Transport Police in each year since 1997 for suspected crimes committed on property other than the railways. [171912]

Mr. McNulty: The British Transport Police (BTP) have provided the following information on arrests made for crimes committed on property other than the railways since 1997.
 
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Arrests made for other forces including Scottish forces

	Total number of arrests
1997–98	1,119
1998–99	1,513
1999–2000	1,174
2000–01	1,175
2001–02	1,000
2002–03	760
2003–04	1,224

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