Written questions by Cooper.

Whether when new rolling stock is introduced to a railway line she requires accessibility accessories such as Harrington Humps to be relocated to ensure compatibility.

Awaiting answer.

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 May to Question 510 on Railway Stations: CCTV, whether details have been made available by Network Rail on whether bike thefts will be included in the assessment of railway stations

Awaiting answer.

With reference to the Brighton Main Line: Strategic position and evidence base summary, published April 2026, if she will instruct Network Rail to develop network enhancement proposals for the Brighton mainline

The Rail Minister was recently briefed on the opportunity to enhance planned renewals on the Brighton Main Line during Control Period 8. The opportunity will be carefully considered alongside other national investment proposals.

What proportion of funding for transport to support the Universal United Kingdom resort will be allocated to (a) improving the Bedford - Brighton Thameslink route and (b) the Croydon Area Remodelling Scheme.

My Department is working with all Universal United Kingdom resort delivery partners to refine our transport infrastructure plans. At this point, the focus of investment is a new railway station at Wixams, upgrades to local roads and upgrades to the A421 s...

With reference to the Answer of 15 December 2025 to Question 99812 on Railway Stations: CCTV, on what date CCTV systems at St Albans City Station will be integrated with (a) British Transport Police and (b) Her

Further to the answer of 15 December 2025 to Question 99812, this work is in progress by Network Rail who are delivering the project on behalf of the rail industry. These details are not yet available.

If she will conduct a review of the adequacy of the Jet Zero strategy in the context of approved expansion of aircraft capacity at Luton Airport.

The government is committed to meeting its target of net zero emissions by 2050. In line with a precautionary approach to estimating the level of future carbon emissions from aviation, and to reflect the uncertainty around future developments in this area...

What progress her department has made in increasing the availability of driving tests in St Albans since 3 November 2025.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is intensifying its efforts to reduce waiting times and improve access to driving tests. DVSA is continuing with its recruitment campaigns for new driving examiners. Since November 2025, for those test centre...

With reference to the Answer of 15 December 2025 to Question 99812 on Railway Stations: CCTV, whether bike thefts will be included in the assessment of railway stations with the highest crime levels when priori

Further to the answer of 15 December 2025 to Question 99812, this work is in progress by Network Rail who are delivering the project on behalf of the rail industry. These details are not yet available.

What steps she will take to reduce reliance on rest-day working to operate timetabled passenger rail services on the Thameslink route when the operator is nationalised.

DFTO are supporting GTR in the recruitment of additional Thameslink drivers, which will assist in reducing reliance on rest day working. There have been over 50 new drivers on the GTR network since July 2024, with further drivers currently being trained. ...

If she will approve funding for (a) the Croydon Area Remodelling Scheme and (b) Midland Mainline capacity improvement to mitigate forecasted capacity constraints on the Thameslink route.

The Department recognises the significant growth pressures and opportunities facing the rail network from major developments such as the expansion of Luton and Gatwick Airports, the proposed Universal Studios theme park in Bedfordshire, and extensive plan...

If she will take steps to introduce a cap on the fees charged by app providers to local authorities for operating the National Parking Platform.

The National Parking Platform is intended to support greater competition and choice by enabling multiple parking app providers to operate across participating local authorities. While the Government is keen to see this system make parking easier for all, pricing decisions relating to the operation of the National Parking Platform are commercial matters for the National Parking Platform, app providers and local authorities. Both local authorities and app providers are represented on the Board of the National Parking Platform as a part of its not-for-profit governance structure.

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a national register of opticians licensed to carry out DVLA eyesight tests.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is responsible for ensuring that all drivers meet the medical standards required for safe driving, including for eyesight. Drivers who notify the DVLA of a medical condition that may affect their eyesight may be asked to have a formal vision test. These tests are conducted by Specsavers on behalf of the DVLA. The current contract for this purpose was awarded to Specsavers in February 2025 following a competitive tender exercise. There are no plans to introduce a national register of opticians licensed to carry out these tests.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 December to Question 96304 on St Albans City Station: CCTV, if Network Rail will publish a list of railway stations to be prioritised for CCTV integration.

The Department has committed £17 million to improve CCTV connectivity on the railway. Network Rail are delivering the project and as they are currently in the start up phase of the project the details you have requested are not yet available.

Pursuant to the Answer of 9 December to Question 96304 on St Albans City Station: CCTV whether bike thefts will be included in the assessment of railway stations with the highest crime levels when prioritising CCTV integration across the network.

The Department has committed £17 million to improve CCTV connectivity on the railway. Network Rail are delivering the project and as they are currently in the start up phase of the project the details you have requested are not yet available.

If she will hold discussions with Thameslink on taking steps to reduce reliance on rest-day working to operate timetabled passenger rail services.

Department Officials meet regularly with Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) to review performance and reliability, including driver resource considerations. The Department is supporting GTR in the recruitment of nearly 100 additional Thameslink drivers, which will assist in reducing reliance on rest day working.

With reference to the letter from the Minister of State for Rail to the hon. Member for St Albans of 28 November 2025, reference MC/00054165 whether she has received representations from Govia Thameslink Railway on integrating CCTV at St Albans City station with the new system to facilitate ease of access for authorised police and rail industry personnel.

The rail CCTV connectivity project is in its start-up phase. It is being delivered by Network Rail, who will ensure improved connectivity to British Transport Police (BTP) will be prioritised at the stations with the greatest footfall and greatest crime. GTR already provides the BTP and other police forces with CCTV footage from its trains, stations and body worn cameras across its network, but this project will speed up that process.

Whether she provides guidance to Train Operating Companies on the declassification of first class portions of services during periods of high demand.

The Secretary of State for Transport does not issue guidance to train operating companies on the declassification of first-class accommodation during periods of high demand. Decisions on whether to declassify first class accommodation are operational matters for individual train operating companies.

If she will bring forward the statutory review of the Jet Zero strategy.

This Government is committed to delivering greener transport as part of its missions to kickstart economic growth and make Britain a clean energy superpower. We are progressing a range of measures to support the decarbonisation of the aviation sector at pace. The Government has introduced the Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Mandate and the SAF Bill to provide revenue certainty for UK SAF producers, is delivering airspace modernisation, which will see cleaner, quicker and quieter journeys, and is providing funding to support the develop of low and zero emission aerospace technologies. While there are no statutory obligations for the Government to review the Jet Zero Strategy, we continue to keep our approach to support the decarbonisation of aviation under review.

What steps her Department is taking to increase the availability of driving tests in St Albans.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times.On the 23 April, the Secretary of State for Transport appeared before the Transport Select Committee and announced that DVSA will take further actions to reduce waiting times for all customers across Great Britain.These actions include incentivised additional testing offers for driving examiners, doubling permanent training capacity for new driving examiners, and a call for volunteers from those currently in other roles (but qualified to examine) to carry out practical driving tests.DVSA is continuing with recruitment campaigns across the country to provide as many tests as possible. Since July last year, DVSA has recruited and trained 290 driving examiners (DE) who are now in post and delivering driving tests.St Albans driving test centre is part of a cluster of test centres, including Stevenage.A new entrant examiner has recently passed their training course and is now testing full time and conducting driving tests at both St Albans and Stevenage driving test centres. A further new entrant examiner is in their final week of training, if successful they will begin conducting tests at St Albans and Stevenage from 3 November 2025. DVSA has also made offers to one further new entrant examiner, DVSA will arrange their training course as soon as they have accepted.On 28 May, DVSA launched a public consultation on improving the rules for booking car driving tests. The consultation closed on 23 July. DVSA will review the feedback given and announce next steps as soon as possible. Further information on the consultation can be found at:www.gov.uk/government/consultations/improving-car-driving-test-booking-rules/improving-car-driving-test-booking-rules

When her Department plans to publish the (a) findings of and (b) next steps from its consultation entitled Improving car driving test booking rules, published on 28 May 2025.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times.On the 23 April, the Secretary of State for Transport appeared before the Transport Select Committee and announced that DVSA will take further actions to reduce waiting times for all customers across Great Britain.These actions include incentivised additional testing offers for driving examiners, doubling permanent training capacity for new driving examiners, and a call for volunteers from those currently in other roles (but qualified to examine) to carry out practical driving tests.DVSA is continuing with recruitment campaigns across the country to provide as many tests as possible. Since July last year, DVSA has recruited and trained 290 driving examiners (DE) who are now in post and delivering driving tests.St Albans driving test centre is part of a cluster of test centres, including Stevenage.A new entrant examiner has recently passed their training course and is now testing full time and conducting driving tests at both St Albans and Stevenage driving test centres. A further new entrant examiner is in their final week of training, if successful they will begin conducting tests at St Albans and Stevenage from 3 November 2025. DVSA has also made offers to one further new entrant examiner, DVSA will arrange their training course as soon as they have accepted.On 28 May, DVSA launched a public consultation on improving the rules for booking car driving tests. The consultation closed on 23 July. DVSA will review the feedback given and announce next steps as soon as possible. Further information on the consultation can be found at:www.gov.uk/government/consultations/improving-car-driving-test-booking-rules/improving-car-driving-test-booking-rules