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18 Feb 2008 : Column 142W—continued
Bull Bars: Regulation
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what regulations cover the driving of a vehicle fitted with bull bars that was imported as such; and if she will make a statement. [183631]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Vehicles that are imported into the UK have to meet the requirements of the single vehicle approval scheme, which currently does not cover bull bars. The Department will be consulting shortly on amending the scheme to require all bull bars on imported vehicles to meet the technical requirements contained within Directive 2005/66/EC.
Concessionary Fares Scheme
Mr. Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2008, Official Report, column 1352W, on the concessionary fares scheme, if she will break down by main budget heading the £1 billion spent by Government annually on the scheme. [184421]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Between 2000 and 31 March 2006 the statutory minimum bus concession was half fare off-peak local bus travel within an eligible resident's local authority area. During this period funding to local authorities for the statutory minimum concession through formula grant was not separately identified. However, local authority spending on concessionary travel at the end of this period was almost £500 million per year and a significant proportion of this expenditure would have been sourced from formula grant funding.
From 1 April 2006, with the improvement to the statutory minimum concession to free off-peak local bus travel within a resident's local authority area, the Government provided an extra £350 million in 2006-07 and a further £367.5 million in 2007-08. This was accompanied by allocations of £69 million and £72 million in those two years to the devolved administrations under the Barnett formula.
For the further improvement to the statutory minimum concession to England-wide travel from 1 April this year, the Government are providing an additional £212 million special grant funding in 2008-09. This equates to £250 million when allocations to the devolved administrations under the Barnett formula are included. This takes our best estimate of total central Government funding for statutory concessionary travel in 2008-09 to around £1 billion.
Cycling: Road Traffic Offences
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps she (a) has taken and (b) plans to take in each of the next two years to raise awareness of the consequences of cyclists going through a red traffic light; and if she will make a statement. [186290]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Highway Code details the legal responsibilities of all road users and was revised last year. There is no excuse for any road user to ignore red traffic lights. It puts both the perpetrator and other road users in danger. All road users should obey all road traffic laws and treat others with respect. Enforcement of the law is a matter for the police, and the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) has written to all chief police officers asking them to take action against cyclists going through red lights.
We are supporting Bikeability the new national standard for cycle training. We have made funds available to Cycling England to train 500,000 children by 2012. We believe better training of children will lead to better behaviour by cyclists on the road as well as encouraging children to continue to cycle as adults.
Driver and Vehicle Licence Agency: Correspondence
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people have claimed that letters sent to the DVLA register changes of ownership had been lost in the post in the last two years; what discussions she has had with Royal Mail and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency on this issue; and if she will make a statement. [180597]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The information is not held in the form requested.
Under the terms of its contract with the Royal Mail, the DVLA monitors its performance in the distribution of mail from Swansea. Mail sent by customers to the DVLA is not covered by this contract. Customers sending letters to the DVLA make their own arrangements with the Royal Mail. Nevertheless, in exceptional circumstances, the DVLA does ask Royal Mail to search for items that have been reported as lost on their way to the agency.
Driving Tests
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to her statement of 17 December 2007, Official Report, column 624, on Department for Transport data storage, what internal rules are used by Pearson Driving Assessments to ensure compliance with UK data protection law. [176274]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The contract between the Department for Transport and Pearson Driving Assessments Ltd requires the latter to comply with obligations equivalent to those imposed on the Department, as a data controller, as stated by the seventh principle of the Data Protection Act 1998. This principle requires that appropriate technical and organisational measures be taken against unauthorised or unlawful processing of personal data and against accidental loss or destruction of, or damage to, personal data.
Pearson Driving Assessments Ltd is ISO 27001 accredited. Pearson has appointed an independent internal auditor to annually review the design and operation of the control procedures performed by Pearson Driving Assessments Ltd.
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance she has issued to the Driving Standards Agency on factors to be taken into account when deciding on the location of driving test centres. [185996]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Ministers have agreed the Driving Standards Agency's published ‘Code of Practice on Written Consultations—Driving Test Centres’. This was revised in July 2005 and is available on the DSA website at:
http://www.dsa.gov.uk/Consultation.asp?id=SXBAF2A 7825C59&cat=418
The DSA needs to provide a safe environment for staff and customers, and to fulfil the demand for services in a cost-efficient manner. With these aims in mind, the DSA considers the following factors when deciding on the location of driving test centres:
a network that enables demand for tests and average waiting time targets to be met;
that most customers should only have to travel a reasonable distance to take their test in relation to where they live;
that theory test centres should be centrally located on public transport routes;
practical test centres must be in an area where a sufficient number of suitable test routes can be provided. Adequate parking for candidates is needed in close proximity to the test centre;
the facilities available in all workplaces must satisfy health and safety and other statutory requirements. Local factors including propensity for assaults, vandalism and break-ins should also be considered;
the cost of the test centre including rent, rates and running costs must be viable and the terms of the lease or other property agreement must be acceptable and sufficiently flexible to satisfy DSA's future requirements; and
ideally full-time, permanent test centres should provide off-road car parking, waiting areas and toilets for the use of candidates and be fully DDA compliant.
Driving Tests: Warrington
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will ensure that the chief executive of the Driving Standards Agency responds to representations from Warrington residents about the proposed relocation of the Warrington driving test centre. [185997]
Jim Fitzpatrick: All representations to the chief executive of the Driving Standards Agency received from Warrington residents about the proposed relocation of Warrington driving test centre will receive a response from her.
Driving Under Influence: Accidents
Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many road accidents involving young people caused by drivers found to be impaired by drugs there were (a) in total and (b) in each police authority in each year since 1997; [185820]
(2) how many young people subsequently found to be under the influence of drugs died as a result of road traffic accidents (a) in total and (b) in each police authority area in each year since 1997. [185821]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The number of reported personal injury road accidents involving at least one young driver/rider (aged 17 to 24) with impairment by drugs (illicit or medicinal) as a contributory factor for 2005 and 2006 in Great Britain is shown in the following table.
| Number of accidents | |
The number of young driver/rider (aged 17 to 24) fatalities resulting from reported road accidents in which the driver/rider had impairment by drugs (illicit or medicinal) as a contributory factor in 2005 and 2006 in Great Britain is shown in the following table.
| Number of fatalities | |
Information on contributory factors is not available for years prior to 2005, and is not available at police authority level.
The contributory factor “impairment by drugs” applies to illicit drugs as well as all medicines, whether prescription or ‘over the counter’. It is not possible to separate the factor into illicit and medicinal drugs.
This factor is recorded in accidents in which the police officer’s opinion at the time of reporting is that the driver/rider was affected by drugs and behaved in a way which caused, or contributed to, the accident. This may not be the result of a drug screening test.
Durham Green Developments Limited
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what meetings (a) Ministers, (b) special advisers and (c) civil servants in her Department have had with representatives of Durham Green Developments Ltd in the last 36 months. [176368]
Mr. Tom Harris: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to his question on 22 January 2008, Official Report, column 819W, in respect of Durham Green Business Park. There have been no other meetings with representatives of Durham Green Developments Ltd.
Electric Vehicles
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if she will meet representatives of the electric personal assistive mobility devices industry to discuss the role of their products in transport policy; [185869]
(2) what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the potential impact of electric personal assistive mobility devices on UK climate change and carbon emissions targets; and if she will make a statement; [185870]
(3) what discussions she has had with her European counterparts on the role of electric personal assistive mobility devices in transport policy; and if she will make a statement. [185871]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Secretary of State for Transport has no current plans to meet representatives of electric personal assistive mobility device manufacturers or promoters, nor has she had discussions on this subject with the Secretary of State for DEFRA or with her European counterparts.
If, as we understand, the use of such devices is likely to be primarily as an alternative to walking or cycling, their potential in terms of greenhouse gas and local pollution reduction is at best negligible.
However, officials will be considering available reports on trials and usage of some of these machines in other countries.
Fares: Non-payment
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will estimate the loss of revenue from fare evasion on the railways in each of the last five years. [183649]
Mr. Tom Harris: The Department does not hold such information, although, as we made clear in our Rail White Paper last summer we believe the industry's reported figure of 5 per cent. to be an underestimate. For this reason we have required operators to implement a structured revenue protection strategy as part of all franchise agreements entered into since 2004.
Further steps were outlined to support revenue protection in the White Paper published last summer, including reviewing the role of gating schemes. Among recent franchises, the Department is securing commitments to gating schemes such as those for Birmingham New Street and London Waterloo.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many on-the-spot fines were issued for fare evasion and possession of an incorrect ticket on trains in each of the last five years; and how much revenue this has generated. [183650]
Mr. Tom Harris:
The train operators do not impose “on the spot fines” for either fare evasion or incorrect tickets. When a passenger has no ticket and is travelling in a penalty fare area, he or she will be charged £20 or double the fare for the journey, whichever is greater. This is not a fine—that is, it is not additional to the
fare, but is a penalty rate for the journey. Outside penalty fare areas passengers may be charged for a full standard fare without the right to discounts available before boarding. This does not apply to some local services where “pay on the train” applies.
The railways also issue excess fares. A person who has the wrong ticket is charged the difference between the ticket held and the correct one when, for instance, travelling between two points along a route that is not allowed by the ticket.
The DfT does not hold information on these categories of fares.
First Great Western: Standards
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps she is taking to improve (a) seating comfort and (b) capacity on services provided by First Great Western. [184070]
Mr. Tom Harris: The White Paper published in the summer included a commitment to 1,300 extra carriages. They will be targeted at the most congested routes on the network.
On 30 January the Department for Transport published its rolling stock plan. This shows indicative numbers of rolling stock per train operating company, and 52 additional vehicles are shown for First Great Western. The rolling stock plan explains that these numbers are not intended to be prescriptive or to limit the development process with the industry, and could therefore be subject to change in the final outcome.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) complaints and (b) representations on the (i) provision of services and (ii) performance by First Great Western services in Hampshire were received by her Department in each month since May 2005; and if she will make a statement. [184071]
Mr. Tom Harris: In the last 12 months, Ministers and officials at the Department for Transport have received many representations regarding various aspects of First Greater Western operations. Ministers remain very concerned about First Great Western's performance, and want to see improvements matching those seen elsewhere in the industry.
Freight: Foreigners
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what action the Government have taken to ensure that foreign-registered haulage vehicles on British roads comply with the requirements of EU legislation. [185630]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) has a specific responsibility to help ensure that all commercial vehicles and drivers comply with the law, irrespective of whether their operating base is in the UK or elsewhere. Additionally, VOSA has significantly stepped up the level of enforcement activity in respect of commercial vehicles undertaking international journeys since the beginning of 2006-07.
The Government have also introduced new provisions in the Road Safety Act 2006 so that—in addition to prohibiting vehicles and drivers for various offences—both VOSA and the police will be able to issue fixed penalties to offenders, regardless of nationality. The Department is aiming to make all the necessary secondary legislation to implement these provisions as soon as possible.
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