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7 Feb 2006 : Column 1052W—continued
Press Coverage
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on how many occasions since 1 April 2003 he has complained to the Press Complaints Commission about the coverage in the press of (a) Ministers or officials and (b) his Department; and how many of these complaints were upheld. [47079]
Mr. Thomas: DFID has not made any complaints to the Press Complaints Commission during this period.
TRANSPORT
A21
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what budget the Highways Agency has identified for compulsory purchase orders along the A21 in East Sussex in (a) 2005–06 and (b) each year from 2006–07 to 2010–11. [49076]
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Dr. Ladyman: The budget for the Targeted Programme of Improvements does not include any schemes on the A21.
The Proposed Route for the A21 Flimwell to Robertsbridge Improvement was announced in February 2005 and this has triggered the option for property owners directly affected by the proposals to submit a Blight Notice to the Highways Agency, requesting them to buy their property.
Further development of the scheme is dependent upon the outcome of the Regional Prioritisation exercise and subsequent ministerial announcement.
The agency currently has a provision of £10 million for qualifying cases in the financial year 2005–06, with a further £5 million forecast for 2006–07.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans the Highways Agency has to rent out properties purchased under compulsory purchase orders along the A21 between Flimwell and Robertsbridge. [49462]
Dr. Ladyman: A compulsory purchase order has not yet been published for this scheme. The Proposed Route for the A21 Flimwell to Robertsbridge Improvement was announced in February 2005 and this has triggered the option for property owners directly affected by the proposals to submit a Blight Notice to the Highways Agency, requesting them to buy their property.
Properties that qualify and are acquired through this process are being rented out as soon as possible through the agency's managing agent.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received from the Chief Executive of the South East England Development Agency regarding the proposed A21 upgrade between Flimwell and Robertsbridge. [49460]
Dr. Ladyman: The Chief Executive of the South East England Development Agency wrote to the Highways Agency on 4 March 2003 in response to the public consultation on the A21 South of Pembury to Hastings, which included proposals for upgrading the route between Flimwell and Robertsbridge.
Air Traffic (Noise and Pollution)
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what alternatives to runway alteration he will propose to provide respite from air traffic noise and pollution; and if he will make a statement. [47213]
Ms Buck: Options for introducing mixed mode at Heathrow are still being developed. There will be public consultation on any proposals and this will address the implications for runway alternation, as currently operated, and any mitigation measures.
Consultancy Contracts
Chris Grayling:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultancy contracts worth more than £100,000 have been entered into by (a) his Department, (b) the Highways Agency, (c) the Strategic Rail
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Authority and (d) the Driver Vehicle and Licensing Authority in each of the past five years; and what work the contracts covered. [43595]
Ms Buck: The Department follows central guidance on awarding contracts set out by the Office of Government Commerce. Projects are only contracted out where they require specialist advice that cannot be provided in house. All contracts are awarded following a competitive tendering process in order to ensure value for money.
A table has been placed in the Libraries of the House listing the contracts in excess of £100,000 which have been entered into, since the Department was created in May 2002.
Fixed Penalties
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how much has been raised through fixed penalties for (a) heavy goods vehicles and (b) public service vehicle operators since January 2004; [48223]
(2) how much money his Department expects to raise from fixed penalties for HGV and PSV operators in 2007–08. [48226]
Dr. Ladyman: At present the only fixed penalties that apply to HGVs and PSVs are those that apply to all motorists, for example for moving traffic offences such as speeding or using a mobile phone. The penalties are levied on the driver rather than the operator. There is no breakdown available that indicates how many of these fixed penalties are paid by drivers of HGVs and PSVs.
The Road Safety Bill contains enabling provisions for a system of graduated fixed penalties for offences specific to the operation of HGVs and PSVs, for example overloading and exceeding driver's hours limits. The amount of revenue from the fixed penalty scheme will depend on the levels for fixed penalties and the range of offences for which they will be used. These details will be settled after a public consultation.
Heathrow (Sustainable Development)
Mr. Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress is being made on the Project for the Sustainable Development of Heathrow; and when he expects the project to report. [46317]
Ms Buck: The work continues, to programme the technical review of current air quality around Heathrow and the approach to future assessment is largely complete. We expect to publish a full report on this shortly, following peer review. This will put us in a stronger position to re-assess the likely position at Heathrow under different scenarios in future years. We are continuing to examine measures to address surface access and noise in the event of further development, including a short third runway and the possible introduction of mixed mode.
Details of the work programme are on the Department for Transport's website and further papers will be published on the website as work progresses, in accordance with the Department's publication scheme. We expect to be reaching some conclusions later this year.
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Motorway Signs
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what advice his Department has issued regarding the use of overhead electronic gantry signs on motorways for messages other than those related to relevant traffic conditions; and if he will make a statement. [49050]
Dr. Ladyman: Variable Message Signs (VMS) are generally used to display real time traffic information to help drivers complete their journeys safely and efficiently. They give warning of slow moving traffic and queues as well as delays, and give motorists the opportunity to make decisions in-journey.
VMS are also used to display safety campaign messages such as DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE, KEEP LEFT UNLESS OVERTAKING and MAKE TIME FOR A BREAK.
VMS can also be used to provide accurate information for the motorist, to reduce the effects of congestion. They can give information about possible congestion from major events likely to have a significant effect on the motorway. This type of information is given near to the location Where congestion may occur, for the journey in question.
Multi-modal Studies
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how much his Department contributed to the (a) West Midlands to East Midlands, (b) West Midlands and (c) East Midlands Multi-modal Studies; what the total cost was of carrying out each study; which of each study's recommendations have been approved by his Department; and in which recommended areas construction work has commenced; [44751]
(2) how much his Department contributed to the (a) A453, (b) A52, (c) A34 and (d) M60 Multi-modal Studies; what the total cost was of carrying out each study; which of each study's recommendations have been approved by his Department; and in which recommended areas construction work has commenced; [44752]
(3) how much his Department contributed to the (a) London to South Midlands, (b) London orbital and (c) Thames Valley Multi-modal Studies; what the total cost was of carrying out each study; which of each study's recommendations have been approved by his Department; and in which recommended areas construction work has commenced; [44753]
(4) how much his Department contributed to the (a) Cambridge to Huntingdon, (b) Norwich to Peterborough and (c) London to Ipswich Multi-modal Studies; what the total cost was of carrying out each study; which of each study's recommendations have been approved by his Department; and in which recommended areas construction work has commenced; [44754]
(5) how much his Department contributed to the (a) M1 North/South, (b) south coast and (c) access to Hastings Multi-modal Studies; what the total cost was of carrying out each study; which of each study's recommendations have been approved by his Department; and in which recommended areas construction work has commenced; [44755]
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(6) how much his Department contributed to the (a) South-West area, (b) South-East Manchester and (c) West Midlands to North-West Multi-modal Studies; what the total cost was of carrying out each study; which of each study's recommendations have been approved by his Department; and in which recommended areas construction work has commenced; [44756]
(7) how much his Department contributed to the (a) Hull (East-West Corridor), (b) South and West Yorkshire and (c) Tyneside Multi-modal Studies; what the total cost was of carrying out each study; which of each study's recommendations have been approved by his Department; and in which recommended areas construction work has commenced; [44757]
(8) how much his Department contributed to the A1 Multi-modal Study; what the total cost was of carrying out the study; which of the study's recommendations have been approved by his Department; and in which recommended areas construction work has commenced. [44758]
Dr. Ladyman: The cost of each Multi-modal Study funded by the Department for Transport is set out in the following table
The Multi-modal Studies were strategic transport studies which developed recommendations for implementation over the short, medium and longer term up to 2031. Many of the schemes recommended required further detailed development and appraisal work before being ready for implementation. In our responses to the Multi-modal Studies we set out the way in which we wished to see the study recommendations taken forward by the relevant delivery agencies.
Our responses to the Studies were placed in the Library of the House at the time of the announcements. I would refer the hon. Member to my answer of 2 February 2006, Official Report, columns 658–62W, to the hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Tom Brake) which shows the schemes recommended by the Multi-modal Studies that have reached the stage of Programme Entry or equivalent with agreed funding allocations.
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