| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
8 May 2006 : Column 25W—continued
A38/A5148 southbound free-flow link to alleviate congestion
A5 Hints bypass—major new road scheme to improve safety and journey time reliability
A38 Little Hay footbridge—new footbridge constructed as part of Hints bypass
The following Highways Agency schemes are either presently under construction or scheduled to begin in 2006-07:
A38 Bassett's Pole—junction improvement (traffic signals) to improve safety and journey time reliability, including signalisation of the island
A5 Tamworth bypass Phase 2—replacement of porous asphalt surface, including the slip roads at Stoneydelf and Glascote
A38 Swinfen—resurfacing of the northbound entry slip road
A38 Swinfen Gap—closure of the central reservation gaps to improve safety
A5 Tamworth bypass—improvements to the slip roads at Ventura Park and Fazeley to improve safety
A5 Tamworth bypass—ecology improvements to an adjacent drainage area to enhance the habitat for great crested newts
A38 Canwell—installation of interactive signs and other signing improvements to improve safety
The following Highways Agency schemes are also planned:
A38 Weeford Quarry to Canwell—Resurfacing works
Additionally, a number of Section 278 development schemes are being undertaken by external organisations with consent from the Highways Agency. These are as follows:
A38 Swinfen Prison—provision of acceleration lane at prison access.
A5 Bitterscote, Tamworth—provision of new roundabout junction at existing Bitterscote junction to access development site
A5 Wall—potential alterations to existing roundabout junction
A38 Weeford—Potential improvements to the access at Blackbrook Farm
On rail, the Trent Valley four tracking scheme on the West Coast Main Line which falls within Tamworth and started in 2003 will provide 19km of an additional two tracks at a cost of £327 million. This is expected to be complete in 2008.
Transport Subsidies
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 19 April 2006, Official Report, column 713W, on transport subsidies, how much subsidy for public transport was allocated by his Department to (a) Hampshire county council, (b) Portsmouth city council and (c) Southampton city council in each of the last five years in (i) cash and (ii) real terms. [67377]
Dr. Ladyman: The amount of subsidy for integrated transport allocated by the Department to Hampshire
county council; Portsmouth city council; and Southampton city council in the last five years is shown in the following tables. Integrated transport funding is used by the local authorities to fund all non-maintenance transport investment schemes costing less than £5 million—small road projects, road safety schemes, bus priority schemes, walking and cycling schemes, as well as transport information schemes. It is for the councils concerned to decide how much should be allocated to public transport.
In addition Hampshire county council and Portsmouth city council have received funding for the A3 bus corridor as shown in the table.
| (a)(i) Cash terms | |||||
| £ million | |||||
| Nature of funding for Hampshire county council | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 |
| (a)(ii) Real terms | |||||
| £ million (2005 prices) | |||||
| Nature of funding for Hampshire county council | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 |
| (b)(i) Cash terms | |||||
| £ million | |||||
| Nature of funding for Portsmouth city council | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 |
| (b)(ii) Real terms | |||||
| £ million (2005 prices) | |||||
| Nature of funding for Portsmouth city council | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 |
| (c)(i) Cash terms | |||||
| £ million | |||||
| Nature of funding for Southampton city council | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 |
| (c)(ii) Real terms | |||||
| £ million (2005 prices) | |||||
| Nature of funding for Southampton city council | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 |
| (1) The figures comprise of Rural Bus Subsidy Grant (RBSG), and awards made under the Rural Bus Challenge, and Urban Bus Challenge funding. |
Vehicle Registration
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the number of vehicles registered (a) with false details and (b) to a (i) false and (ii) non-existent address. [61404]
Dr. Ladyman: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) would refuse to record any details on the basis of information that it knew to be false, and therefore the information requested is not available. However, a recent survey estimated that 97.4 per cent. of vehicles can be traced directly or indirectly from the records held at DVLA.
Solicitor-General
Crown Prosecution Service
Mr. Byers: To ask the Solicitor-General if he will review the basis on which the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decides whether to bring a prosecution with a view to encouraging the CPS to be less risk averse when making such decisions. [68925]
The Solicitor-General: Each case the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) receives from the police is reviewed in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. Application of the Code means that a case is prosecuted when there is sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction (the 'evidential test') and that the prosecution is in the public interest (the 'public interest test'). The Code is issued by the Director of Public Prosecutions under Section 10 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 and it is periodically reviewed by the CPS. The last review occurred in 2004 and included a public consultation exercise. The current edition of the Code was published in November 2004.
Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) reviews CPS performance regarding the application of the Code. HMCPSI's 2004-05 annual report records that CPS average percentage compliance with the evidential test at initial review over the 2002-04 inspection cycle is at 98.6 per cent.; and the equivalent compliance with the public interest test is at 99.9 per cent. There are no current plans for a review of the Code.
Defence
AWOL
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers on operational tour in (a) Iraq and (b) Afghanistan went absent without leave in each quarter since January 2003. [68523]
Mr. Ingram: There have been no reports of soldiers on operational tour in Iraq or Afghanistan going absent without leave (AWOL) over the period in question. However, this does not include those individuals who may have gone AWOL while returned partway through their tour of Iraq on rest and recuperation or for other reasons. This level of data is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Crown Dependencies
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been spent on defence for each of the Crown Dependencies in each of the last 10 years. [67087]
Mr. Ingram: The United Kingdom is responsible for the defence of the Crown Dependencies. There are no military forces specifically allocated to the provision of this task and, therefore, I am unable to identify separately the costs incurred in maintaining their defence.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |