Written questions by Sabine.

Whether she has had recent discussions with National Highways on minimising disruption to local residents and businesses during the closure of the A36 at Limpley Stoke.

The scheme is to repair a geotechnical fault and stabilise the embankment by the A36 and as such is a business as usual safety related scheme led by National Highways. National Highways has engaged with local businesses, residents residing within the limits of the closure, Bath and North-East Somerset Council, Wiltshire Council and is currently speaking with Parish Councils.The scheme will produce a stable road with reduced risk of a more extended closure for a future failure. Work will commence from 12th August 2024 and last until Spring 2025. Extensive signage will be erected from Bath and the south advising of the closure and diversion routes.

What information her Department holds on the number of (a) suspensions and (b) exclusions from schools in Somerset by age in each of the last ten years.

The department publishes figures from the school census on suspensions and permanent exclusions from state-funded schools in England. The most recent release can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/suspensions-and-permanent-exclusions-in-england. The number of suspensions and permanent exclusions in Somerset by age, for the 2013/14 to 2022/23 academic years, which is the latest data available, can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/31f23f0d-20c2-4c95-b8d0-08dcab23db45.

How many emergency calls in (a) Frome and East Somerset constituency, (b) Somerset and (c) the Avon and Somerset police force area went unconnected as a result of the network failure on 25 June 2023.

The Post-Incident Review into Disruption of the Public Emergency Call Service on Sunday, 25 June 2023, published on 21 March 2024, sets out that during the incident (spanning 06:24 to 16:56), a total of 9,641 unique callers were unable to access the emergency services via 999/112 and many more were delayed or disrupted.The Home Office does not hold a breakdown of this data by constituency, local authority or police force area.

If she will make an assessment of safety measures in place for the A361 around Frome.

Somerset Council are the relevant highways authority for the A361 around Frome and are responsible for any assessments on road safety. However, I am aware that Somerset’s Road Safety Team have been active in engaging with the community and are working with the Police over further road safety engagement and enforcement plans for later this year. I understand they are also undertaking a reassessment of traffic engineering measures at certain locations to see if any measures might help to reduce the likelihood of collisions occurring.

What the (a) average waiting time and (b) longest waiting time for driving tests in Somerset was in each of the last ten years.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is to reduce car practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards. As of 15 July 2024, there were 531,704 car practical driving tests booked, and 91,306 driving tests available within the 24-week booking window. The table below shows the average waiting time by year for a driving test at each driving test centre in Somerset. Waiting time (weeks)Weston-Super-MareYeovilTaunton2014/155672015/16101092016/179652017/186552018/198562019/20*6.77.762020/219.412.110.82021/229.115.816.72022/2316.216.616.82023/2420.520.616.3As of June 202419.318.817.1*In 2020, the DVSA extended the booking window for customers, allowing them to book a driving test up to 24 weeks in advance. The 24-week booking window is still in place.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of pollution levels in the River Frome.

The Environment Agency (EA) undertake a programme of ecological, water quality and chemical monitoring on the Somerset Frome according to the requirements defined by the Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) Regulations 2017 (WFD). This provides an understanding of the overall Ecological Status of the river. The EA act on the findings of this monitoring, to investigate any failures to meet the status required. The WFD monitoring classification shows the Frome from its source to the confluence with the Maiden Bradley Brook as achieving poor ecological status. The Frome from Maiden Bradley Brook to the River Mells is achieving a moderate ecological status. The reasons for not achieving good ecological status are a mixture of point and diffuse source pollution. This is elevating the nutrient levels in the water which in turn are affecting the plant and algal communities in the river. The results of the Environment Agency’s monitoring work indicate that sources are a mixture of treated sewage discharges from water company assets and from agricultural and land management practices. Cleaning up our rivers, lakes and seas is a top government priority. Change has already begun – the Water (Special Measures) Bill, announced during the King’s Speech, delivers on our manifesto commitment to put water companies under special measures by strengthening regulation to clean up our waters. That change will take time. Over the coming weeks and months, the Government will outline further steps to reform the water sector and restore our rivers, lakes and seas to good health.