| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
19 Dec 2006 : Column 1752W—continued
Written Submissions
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many formal written submissions he has received from his Department's civil servants in the last 12 months; and to how many of these submissions he has made a formal response. [106535]
John Healey: Treasury Ministers and officials are in continuous dialogue.
Transport
Rail Services
9. Lynda Waltho: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what change there has been in the use of light railways in the last 10 years. [109936]
Mr. Tom Harris: In the last 10 years, the number of passenger journeys made by light rail has increased by 123 per cent. from 73 million in 1995-96 to 162 million in 2005-06.
15. Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to increase capacity on the railways; and if he will make a statement. [109942]
Mr. Tom Harris: Since 1996-97 the number of passenger journeys on the railway has increased by 35 per cent. Current forecasts suggest that this trend will continue.
Next summer the Government will publish their High Level Output Specification, stating what they wish to purchase from the railway over the regulatory Control Period until 2014. A central element will be of the increases in capacity that they wish to purchase.
20. Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the future capacity of the railways. [109947]
Mr. Tom Harris: Since 1996-97 the number of passenger journeys on the railway has increased by 35 per cent. Current forecasts suggest that this trend will continue.
Next summer the Government will publish their High Level Output Specification, stating what they wish to purchase from the railway over the regulatory Control Period until 2014. A central element will be of the increases in capacity that they wish to purchase.
Roads: Kettering
11. Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will visit Kettering to discuss local highways during his visit to Northamptonshire on 10 January 2007. [109938]
Dr. Ladyman: Unfortunately, due to parliamentary business, I will be unable to visit Northamptonshire as intended on 10 January, but I hope to be able reschedule for a later date. As part of any visit, I would certainly hope to visit Kettering to discuss local highway and other transport infrastructure issues.
Bus Services
12. Stephen Pound: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on levels of bus usage. [109939]
Gillian Merron: The Government are committed to seeing an increase in bus use. Patronage in England has risen by over 7 per cent. since 2000, although growth is patchy. This is why, last week, we published proposals which aim to bring about better bus services for all of our communities.
18. Mrs. Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on levels of bus usage. [109945]
Gillian Merron: The Government are committed to seeing an increase in bus use. Patronage in England has risen by over 7 per cent. since 2000, although growth is patchy. This is why, last week, we published proposals which aim to bring about better bus services for all of our communities.
Channel Tunnel Rail Link
13. Chris Mole: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the channel tunnel rail link section 2 to St. Pancras to be completed. [109940]
Mr. Tom Harris: I expect section 2 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (or high speed one) into St. Pancras to be opened for Eurostar passenger services commencing on Wednesday 14 November 2007.
Fuel Duty: Congestion
16. Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the likely effect on congestion of increases in fuel duty. [109943]
Dr. Ladyman: We do not assess the impacts of tax as that is an issue for the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who takes account of economic, environmental and social considerations when setting tax.
However, modelling suggest that raising fuel duty would be significantly less efficient than road pricing as a means of reducing congestion.
Boys-Smith Review
17. Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made on the implementation of the Boys-Smith review of airport security; and if he will make a statement. [109944]
Gillian Merron: Since the Secretary of State’s statement of 20 July officials have been engaging with stakeholders on the detail of the recommendations. The Secretary of State intends to make a further statement in the new year.
Freight Transport: Water
19. Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the implications of recent reductions in the budget for British Waterways for freight transport by water. [109946]
Dr. Ladyman: The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs leads on inland waterways, but officials from the two Departments do meet on a regular basis to discuss issues of mutual interest, including freight transport on the inland waterways. However, it is ultimately a matter for navigation authorities to prioritise their activities in the light of competing demands for available resources.
Air Safety
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set up a committee answerable to him charged with auditing the direct effect of European legislation on (a) air safety and regulation engineers through the European Aviation Safety Agency and (b) boat safety and regulation of boatmen through new directives; and if he will make a statement. [112739]
Gillian Merron: The Government receive regular, comprehensive advice from the Civil Aviation Authority and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency on the direct effect of European legislation in these sectors. We are satisfied that these arrangements provide the Government with adequate information.
Airport Expansion
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the potential impact of airport expansion on greenhouse gas emissions from (a) passenger aircraft and (b) cargo aircraft using British airports. [109962]
Gillian Merron: Forecast carbon dioxide emissions from UK aviation are reported in “Aviation and Global Warming”, paragraph 3.56:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_aviation/documents/page/dft_aviation_031850.pdf
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what advice has been given to local councils about the length of time before decisions are taken on applications for regional airport expansion. [109986]
Gillian Merron: No specific guidance has been issued to local councils in relation to planning applications for airport expansion.
Airport Security
Mr. David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the Department’s budget is for security improvements at British airports in 2006-07. [105773]
Gillian Merron: Government policy is that the UK aviation industry meets the costs of security—as it does other running costs—and to pass these on to the consumer as appropriate.
The Department does fund the Transport Security and Contingencies Directorate (TRANSEC) which carries out the Department’s regulatory responsibilities for transport security and as part of that funds a programme of research and provides training aids to encourage improvements in transport security in the UK.
The TRANSEC Annual Report 2005-06 provides further details. This can be found at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_transsec/documents/page/dft_transsec_612233.hcsp
Bus Overcrowding
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how his Department measures overcrowding on buses. [108919]
Gillian Merron: The maximum carrying capacity of a bus is established and marked on the vehicle before it enters service. There is no formal measurement of overcrowding while in use, but in accordance with regulations 5 and 7 of the Public Service Vehicle (Carrying Capacity) Regulations 1984, drivers and operators have a legal responsibility to ensure buses are not driven if the carrying capacity is exceeded.
The Department has monitored bus passenger satisfaction in England since 2000-01, publishing results every quarter. These surveys show that most passengers are satisfied that buses are not overcrowded. The statistics are available on the Department’s website.
Consultants
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many consultants are working for his Department. [110015]
Gillian Merron: Details of how many consultants are working for the Department at any time are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, 571 different companies worked for the central Department and its agencies during financial year 2005-06 for which the work undertaken was recorded as consultancy.
Departmental Equipment
Mr. Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many of his Department's (a) computers and (b) laptops were stolen in each of the last nine years; and what the total value was of stolen computers and laptops in this period. [109221]
Gillian Merron: The Department for Transport was formed on 29 May 2002, and the following numbers of computers and laptops have been reported stolen from the central Department and its agencies since then:
| Computers | Laptops | |
The total value of the above was £132,000.
Departmental Expenditure
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total budget for his Department will be if spending on transport is increased in real terms by 2.5 per cent. in each year until 2015. [108968]
Gillian Merron: The total budget for the Department in 2014-15, if spending on transport is increased in real terms by 2.5 per cent. in each year, is estimated at £17.3 billion.
Departmental Finance
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage of gross domestic product was allocated to his Department in each of the last five years. [109256]
Gillian Merron: The Department for Transport's final budget allocations for financial years 2002-03 (its first year in its current form) to 2005-06 can be found in the Department's spring supplementary estimates for those years (House of Commons publications HC424, HC 350, HC 325 and HC 827, respectively), available in the House of Commons library.
GDP figures at current (cash) prices are available from the HM Treasury website by following this link:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/economic_data-and_tools/gdp_deflators/data_gdp_fig.cfm.
Departmental Staff
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the effective date is for annual pay awards to his Department's staff; and what the actual implementation date has been in each of the last five years. [108748]
Gillian Merron
[holding answer 12 December 2006]: Pay arrangements below the senior civil service (SCS)
are delegated to Departments. Under the delegated arrangements, Departments are responsible for managing their own pay negotiations. SCS pay is not negotiated. DfT(C) is made up of a central Department with various agencies, each a separate pay bargaining unit who negotiate and implement their own pay settlements. The effective date of annual pay awards is 1 August each year with the exception of the Government Car and Despatch Agency (GCDA) and the SCS who both have a settlement date of 1 April.
| Department | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 |
| Department | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 |
|
August 2006 (Pay progression) December 2006 (Revalorised steps) | |||||
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |