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4 Nov 2009 : Column 999W—continued
Departmental Postal Services
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport which companies are under contract to his Department to provide mail services; and when each such contract expires. [296081]
Chris Mole: Royal Mail is the main provider of mail services to the Department for Transport.
In addition the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency has an annually renewable contract with Royal Mail for in-bound mail services, which has an expiry date of 15 August 2010.
Mail Services are also provided to the Department by DX Network Services under two separate contracts expiring on 2 October 2010 and 31 August 2011.
Driving: Working Hours
Richard Burden: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will bring forward proposals to amend the Employments Rights Act 1996 to extend the definition of Working Time Regulations to include the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations. [296871]
Paul Clark: The Department for Transport is aware of the issue regarding a possible lack of provision in the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005 for mobile workers to seek redress via employment tribunals.
Departmental officials are exploring the implications of a change to the Employment Rights Act 1996, via an amendment to the Road Transport (Working Time) Regulations 2005, with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Tribunals Service.
When all the facts are known, a formal decision will be made on whether changes are needed. Any proposals for change will need to be the subject of a consultation process.
Finsbury Park Station
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether his Department has made a recent assessment of levels of (a) safety and (b) accessibility at Finsbury Park station; and whether his Department has made a recent estimate of passenger numbers at that station. [297234]
Chris Mole: Annual safety assessment on the railway network is a function of Infrastructure Managers and Railway Undertakings as set out by the Railway and Other Guided Transport Systems (Safety) Regulations 2006 (ROGS) and is overseen by the Office of Rail Regulation, not the Department for Transport.
Reporting and estimating of annual passenger numbers at stations is also a function of the Office of Rail Regulation. However the Department is aware that approximately 5.2 million passenger entries/exits, and 2.4 million interchanges, were estimated at Finsbury Park for the 2007-08 period.
The accessibility of Finsbury Park station was assessed by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) as part of the consultation strategy behind the Railways for All programme in 2005. The SRA concluded that the station did not meet current standards for accessibility and recommended that level access routes be provided to platforms serving passenger trains. Finsbury Park has since been targeted for investment under the Department's Access for All programme towards achieving this, but these plans have been delayed by the decision of London Underground Ltd. to postpone the provision of step free access to underground trains.
Railway Stations: Disabled
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what monitoring his Department undertakes of the construction of step-free access to interchange stations in London; how much funding his Department has allocated for that programme of work; and what recent assessment he has made of progress towards completion of that programme. [297363]
Chris Mole: 38 mainline rail stations in London boroughs have been included in the Access for All programme and are due to receive an accessible route to and between platforms serving passenger trains. Each of these sites has some interchange with the tube, Docklands Light Railway, buses or other modes of transport.
Until detailed designs have been prepared for all these sites, it is too early to give an accurate estimate of the total investment required to deliver the work. However, the programme overall has a ring-fenced budget of £370 million until 2015.
The projects are being delivered by Network Rail, and progress is monitored at monthly programme group meetings and through site visits by officials. Delivery on the programme has improved this year and we expect 11 stations in London boroughs to be completed during 2010.
Railway Stations: Passengers
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the maximum number of passengers is that can be accommodated at Euston station at any point consistent with safety requirements; and on how many occasions since 1 January 2009 this number has been (a) reached and (b) exceeded. [296743]
Chris Mole: Safety arrangements at Euston are covered by Network Rail's authorised safety management system and therefore this is an operational matter for Network Rail as the operator of Euston Station. The hon. Member should contact Network Rail's chief executive at the following address for a response to his questions:
Iain Coucher
Chief Executive
Network Rail
Kings Place
90 York Way
London, N1 9AG.
Railways: Contract Cleaning
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent representations he has received on the working conditions of contract cleaners providing services to train operating companies. [297433]
Chris Mole: At a recent meeting between the RMT Parliamentary Group and the Secretary of State for Transport, the issue of conditions of contract cleaners on Eurostar was raised. Ministers have also received correspondence in relation to the issue.
Railways: Electrification
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what capital funding he has allocated for the electrification of the Barking to Gospel Oak railway line; and what his Department's most recent estimate is of the total cost of the project. [297232]
Chris Mole: In January 2009, the Department for Transport made an offer to contribute a capital sum towards the cost of the electrification of the Gospel Oak to Barking line conditional on Transport for London taking forward the project, including working up a business case, finding the balance of the cost and bearing all risks.
The Department's contribution could be up to £25 million, the amount depending on as yet undefined savings against the budget for the North London Line Camden Road freight scheme announced last year.
Transport for London has since indicated that there is little likelihood that it could undertake to fund and bear the risks of the Gospel Oak to Barking electrification scheme. Although Network Rail and Transport for London have made preliminary cost estimates of this scheme, the Department has not done so.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what discussions he has had with (a) Transport for London and (b) the Mayor of London on the electrification of the Barking to Gospel Oak line. [297233]
Chris Mole: There have been a number of discussions between Department for Transport Ministers and both Transport for London officials and the Mayor of London on the electrification of the Barking to Gospel Oak line. In addition there has been ongoing official engagement on the subject.
Railways: Franchises
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much has been (a) received from and (b) paid out to each train operating company under cap and collar franchise arrangements in each year since 2004. [296773]
Chris Mole [holding answer 2 November 2009]: The amounts paid out and received for franchises subject to cap and collar arrangements is set out in the following table. Complete data for the year ending 31 March 2010 will be available in summer 2010:
| £ m illion | |||||
| Revenue share entitlement/(revenue support liability) in March each year | |||||
| TOC | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
Railways: Penalty Fares
Sir John Stanley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will (a) extend the deadline of 17 November 2009 and (b) conduct a wider public consultation in respect of his consultation with the rail industry on penalty fares. [295952]
Chris Mole [holding answer 27 October 2009]: The documentation for the Department for Transport's consultation on the railway Penalty Fares Rules and Policy has today been published on the Department's website and the deadline for responses has been extended to 27 January 2010.
Sir John Stanley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will publish a public consultation document setting out his proposals for the updating of the Penalty Fares Rules 2002. [295954]
Chris Mole [holding answer 27 October 2009]: The documentation relating to consultation on the railway Penalty Fares Rules and Penalty Fares Policy has today been published on the Department for Transport's website and the deadline for responses has been extended to 27 January 2010.
South London Railway Line
Kate Hoey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what discussions his Department has had with (a) Transport for London, (b) London Travel Watch, (c) the Mayor of London and (d) other organisations on the proposed withdrawal of passenger rail services from the South London Line. [297690]
Chris Mole: This service change was consulted upon as part of the Department for Transport's May 2008 South Central Franchise Consultation. Transport for London, London TravelWatch and a number of other interested parties responded to this consultation. The proposed replacement of the London Victoria to London Bridge service was also consulted upon by Network Rail as part of the South London Line Route Utilisation Strategy (July 2007).
The withdrawal of the planned replacement London Victoria to Bellingham service was requested by the Mayor of London and Transport for London with funds directed instead toward an extended East London
line service. As a condition of this arrangement, the Department required Transport for London and the Mayor to keep stakeholders informed.
West Coast Railway Line: Speed Limits
Mr. Martlew: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether there are plans to improve the signalling on the West Coast Main Line to enable 135 mph running speeds. [296829]
Chris Mole: The Government have no plans for 135 miles per hour (mph) running. The West Coast Main Line was recently modernised and resignalled to permit significantly more 125 mph operations across the route. This has significantly reduced journey times and provided more frequent services for millions of passengers every year.
In January the Government established the High Speed Two company which, by the end of the year, will make a proposal for an entirely new line between London and the West Midlands and advise on the potential development of the high speed network to the north of England and Scotland.
Women and Equality
Departmental Procurement
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what progress the Government Equalities Office has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover Report in its procurement processes. [287145]
Michael Jabez Foster: The Government Equalities Office has a two-fold interest in the recommendations of the Glover Report; both internally with regard to its own procurement processes and externally, with regard to reflecting its recommendations within the legislative and non-legislative equality in procurement work we lead on.
On the former, we will act on Office of Government Commerce central guidance with regard to its implementation as it is rolled out.
On the latter, and in our role as equality lead across government, GEO considers that the recommendations of the Glover Report are compatible with the equality principles expressed around procurement and are engaged with OGC in progressing the initiatives.
Wales
Departmental Homeworking
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff of his Department have been authorised to work from home in the last 12 months. [297734]
Mr. Hain: One member of staff (less than 2 per cent. of the staff employed in the Wales Office) works from home twice weekly.
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