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16 July 2008 : Column 410W—continued

Aviation: Passengers

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many passengers took flights from London Heathrow Airport to (a) Birmingham, (b) Manchester, (c) Edinburgh and (d) Glasgow in each of the last three years. [217771]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The following table shows the number of passengers who took flights from London Heathrow airport to Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow in each of the last three years.

Passengers from London Heathrow to Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester
Thousand

2005 2006 2007

Birmingham(1)

Edinburgh

834

752

724

Glasgow

715

642

603

Manchester

642

555

494

(1) There are no flights between London Heathrow and Birmingham.
Source:
DFT analysis of Civil Aviation Authority data.

16 July 2008 : Column 411W

Departmental Compensation

Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the 10 highest payments made by her Department were under property compensation cases brought against it over the last 12 months for which figures are available; which of the cases were (a) contested and (b) uncontested by her Department; and what the nature of each incident was. [216710]

Jim Fitzpatrick: In the last 12 months, the 10 highest payments made by the Highways Agency, on behalf of the Secretary of State for Transport, were:

£

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

3,330,000.00

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

1,640,419.00

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

1,614,666.60

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

1,350,000.00

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

1,296,360.00

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

859,851.63

Acquisition following service of a blight notice

783,250.00

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

683,156.10

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

675,000.00

Acquisition under compulsory purchase order

495,000.00


All payments arise out of claims for compensation for the acquisition or temporary use of land required for the construction of a new or altered highway. The amount of each payment was determined in accordance with the ‘Compensation Code’ (made up of statute, case law and established practice) and agreed with the affected landowner following negotiations with the Highways Agency's independent valuer. None of the claims were contested in the Lands Tribunal.

Departmental Manpower

Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the change in the number of employees in her Department and its agencies has been since July 2006. [217067]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The central Department and its agencies recorded the following change between July 2006 and July 2008:

Total

July 2006

18840.31

July 2008

18650.36

Change

-189.95


The Vehicle Certification Agency were unable to provide this data without incurring disproportionate cost.


16 July 2008 : Column 412W

Departmental Official Cars

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) which make and model of car is provided for the Leader of the House of Lords by the Government Car and Despatch Agency; [217749]

(2) what car the Government Car and Despatch Agency provides for the Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and Chief Whip; [217763]

(3) which make and model of car she has chosen as her Ministerial car to be provided by the Government Car and Despatch Agency. [217765]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Prime Minister sets the criteria for cars for use by Ministers. Currently, Cabinet Ministers may choose either a diesel powered Jaguar XJ or a Toyota Prius hybrid. Other Ministers may also choose from a Toyota Prius, a Honda Civic hybrid or any other suitable car with a CO2 emission of 185 g/km or less.

Departmental Pay

Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of staff of her Department and its agencies did not receive the maximum bonus possible under a bonus scheme applying to them in the last two years. [217373]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The central Department and its agencies recorded the following proportion of employees who did not receive the maximum bonus applicable through their individual bonus schemes:

Financial period Percentage of employees receiving less than maximum bonus

2006-07

80.46

2007-08

96.16


2007-08 figures do not include the Driving Standards Agency because their group incentive bonus has not yet been paid.

Departmental Retirement

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the standard retirement age in her Department is; and how many people worked beyond the standard retirement age in each of the last five years. [214124]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The standard retirement age in the Department for Transport is 65. Prior to 2006 the standard retirement age was 60. The numbers of staff that worked beyond the standard retirement age in each of the last five years is as follows:

Standard retirement age Staff working beyond standard retirement age

2008

65

141

2007

65

155

2006

65

145

2005

60

771

2004

60

(1)358

(1) The figure for staff working beyond the standard retirement age in 2004 excludes staff working in the Driving Standards Agency. Due to a change of system in the agency in that year a reliable figure is not available.

16 July 2008 : Column 413W

Departmental Travel

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for how many miles of car travel staff in her Department claimed expenses in each of the past three years. [217608]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department for Transport and six of its agencies recorded staff car mileage as contained in the following table:

2005-06 2006-07 2007-08

VCA

337,063

285,566

325,107

MCA

776,622

863,488

652,072

HA

2,689,030

2,415,254

2,040,147

DSA

5,585,147

5,545,335

VOSA

6,800,000

6,200,000

5,800,000

DVLA

1,214,625

1,416,763

1,885,215

DfT

299,996

473,298

230,499

Total

12,117,336

17,239,516

16,489,863


The information for GCDA could only be provided at disproportionate cost. DSA only began recording mileage figures in 2006-07. Information for the previous year could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Government Car and Dispatch Agency: Tolls

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much the Government Car and Dispatch Agency has spent on the London congestion charge in the last financial year. [217774]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Government Car and Despatch Agency paid a total of £109,538 in congestion charges in 2007-08.

Heathrow Airport: Public Participation

Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many letters and other representations were received by her Department in the course of the consultation process Adding Value at Heathrow; and what proportion of the reply letters sent out by the Heathrow Consultation Team stated that it would not be possible to provide the answers to the individual issues raised. [212756]

Jim Fitzpatrick [holding answer 23 June 2008]: Over 65,000 responses have been received to the ‘Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport’ consultation. These included responses received as letters, emails, postcards and response forms, sent either direct to the Department or to the designated freepost address of our response handling agents.

A number of the responses received by the Department asked questions relating to the consultation issues and we replied to 229 stating that “it will not be possible to provide you with answers to the individual issues raised”. However, all responses have been carefully analysed and the report on this will be made available alongside ministerial decisions, which are expected later this year. These decisions will take account of all the evidence, including responses to the consultation.


16 July 2008 : Column 414W

Heathrow Airport: Security

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 17 June 2008, Official Report, column 791W, to the hon. Member for Chipping Barnet, on Heathrow airport: security, how many times her Department has conducted (a) announced and (b) unannounced security inspections and audits (i) prior to and (ii) since the opening of Heathrow Terminal 5; and what the date was of each inspection and audit. [217522]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department monitors the level of compliance through its programme of regular inspections and audits. This activity is predominantly unannounced inspectors seek corrective action from industry where appropriate. We worked closely with Heathrow airport in the lead up to the opening of T5, and have undertaken regular monitoring activity since passenger flights commenced. However, it would not be appropriate to discuss the details of this activity.

Motor Vehicles: Greater London

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many cars were registered in each London borough in each of the last 10 years. [219051]

Jim Fitzpatrick: A table showing the numbers of licensed cars registered in each London borough in each of the last 10 years has been placed in the Libraries of the House.

Motor Vehicles: Registration

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many drivers in England are using a foreign licence. [217606]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The requested information is not held.

Personal Injury

Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the highest 10 payments made by her Department in settlement of personal injury claims brought against it were over the last 12 months for which figures are available; which of those cases were (a) contested and (b) uncontested by the Department; and what the nature of the incident was in each case. [216678]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The-highest 10 payments made by the Department for Transport in settlement of personal injury claims over the last 12 months were as follows:


16 July 2008 : Column 415W
Nature of incident Contested Y es /N o Settlement amount (£000)

Trip/fall injury to employee while at work.

Yes

135

Road traffic accident injury due to flooding

Yes

125

Road traffic accident injury due to flooding

Yes

105

Fall injury to employee

Yes

57

Asbestos related injury. Exposure occurred in 1965 to 1975

Yes

50

Mechanical handling injury to employee

Yes

23

Slip injury to employee

Yes

22.5

Mechanical failure injury to employee

Yes

21

Road traffic accident—collision

Yes

15

Work place injury

Yes

12

Notes:
1. These figures exclude the costs reimbursed to the claimants.
2. No claim was paid without first obtaining relevant evidence and negotiating a settlement figure.

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