Every parliamentary written question tabled by Joe Robertson this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 141–160 of 199 · Department for Transport
What proportion of public electric vehicle charge points were out of service in (a) November 2025 and (b) each month since July 2024.
The Department does not hold this information.The Government is committed to ensuring public charging is reliable, and it is vital that consumers can charge hassle-free. From November 2024, the Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 have required operators to achieve an average reliability of 99% across their network of chargepoints of 50 kW and above.
What the average processing time was for driving licence applications in (a) November 2025 and (b) each month since July 2024.
The tables below show the average number of working days taken to process driving licence applications made both online and not online for both group 1 (cars and motorcycle) and group 2 (lorry and bus) licences. Group 1 Group 2 DateOnline applications Non- online applications Online applicationsNon-online applications Jul 20241.165.341.002.91Aug 20241.225.501.002.16Sept 20241.225.451.011.88Oct 20241.204.841.061.71Nov 20241.194.111.001.69Dec 20241.212.871.051.80Jan 20251.213.511.002.39Feb 20251.214.081.001.64Mar 20251.204.181.001.56Apr 20251.184.091.041.71May 20251.204.751.002.67Jun 20251.275.771.012.82Jul 20251.235.261.002.30Aug 20251.235.061.002.93Sept 20251.234.781.003.37Oct 20251.365.281.002.58Nov 20251.344.241.002.26 Driving licence applications where a medical condition(s) must be investigated before a licence can be issued can take longer as the DVLA is often reliant on information from third parties, including medical professionals, before a licence can be issued. The DVLA is currently rolling out a new casework system which is expected to deliver significant improvements to the services provided to drivers with medical conditions. When fully implemented, this will provide improved turnaround times, increased capacity, increased automation, higher levels of digital functionality and increased digital communication. The DVLA is also planning to launch a new medical services platform which will enable more customers to transact online and will increase the use of email communication.
Whether Great British Railways has published (a) service performance standards, (b) routes for consolidation, and (c) a transition timetable in November 2025.
Great British Railways does not yet exist.
Whether she has asked the Civil Aviation Authority to undertake a review of assisted-travel provision and associated cost increases at UK airports.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) already assesses airport compliance with accessibility requirements through its accessibility framework. It publishes an annual performance report which ranks airport performance and works with airports to improve accessibility services. In November 2024, the Department also established the Aviation Accessibility Task and Finish Group, which published its independent report in July 2025. It set out 19 recommendations, including a review of the CAA’s airport accessibility framework (CAP1228). The Group is now supporting implementation. As the aviation industry operates primarily in the private sector, no assessment has been made of the costs associated with accessibility provisions at UK airports.
What the average waiting time was for MOT appointments in (a) November 2025 and (b) each month since July 2024.
Neither the Department for Transport nor the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), which administers the MOT scheme, collects or holds data on waiting times for MOT appointments. The MOT test is delivered by a network of around 23,000 privately operated garages across Great Britain. Based on available evidence, there appears to be sufficient capacity within this network to meet demand.
How many rail passenger journeys were made in Great Britain in (a) November 2025 and (b) each month since July 2024.
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) publish statistics on rail passenger journeys on a quarterly basis on their data portal: https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/.This information is not available monthly.The latest available information on passenger journeys in Great Britain can be found in Table 1223: https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/statistics/usage/passenger-rail-usage/table-1223-passenger-journeys-by-operator/.
How many local bus routes ceased operating in (a) November 2025 and (b) each month since July 2024.
The Department does not hold this information centrally.
What the average time taken by local authorities to repair a reported pothole was in (a) November 2025 and (b) each month since July 2024.
Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. The Act does not set out specific standards of maintenance, as it is for each individual local highway authority to assess which parts of its network need repair and what standards should be applied, based upon their local knowledge and circumstances. The Department does not hold data on the time taken by local highway authorities to repair reported potholes, but national guidance recommends that defects and potholes which require urgent attention should be made safe at the time of inspection or as soon as possible. This year, local highway authorities were required to publish transparency reports setting out progress on highway maintenance, including the number of potholes they estimate they have filled in recent years. This information can be found on the websites of relevant local highways authorities.
What estimate she has made of the number of potholes filled by local authorities in England in (a) November 2025 and (b) each month since July 2024.
Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. The Act does not set out specific standards of maintenance, as it is for each individual local highway authority to assess which parts of its network need repair and what standards should be applied, based upon their local knowledge and circumstances. The Department does not hold data on the time taken by local highway authorities to repair reported potholes, but national guidance recommends that defects and potholes which require urgent attention should be made safe at the time of inspection or as soon as possible. This year, local highway authorities were required to publish transparency reports setting out progress on highway maintenance, including the number of potholes they estimate they have filled in recent years. This information can be found on the websites of relevant local highways authorities.
What the policy rationale is for clause 31(7) of the Railways Bill, which provides that the obligation to provide or secure the provision of designated railway passenger services does not give rise to civil liability; and whether she has assessed how this limitation of liability aligns with (a) accountability within the new rail system and (b) the protection of passenger rights.
Clause 31(7) of the Bill makes it clear that the Secretary of State, Scottish Ministers or Welsh Ministers cannot be found liable for breach of statutory duty (which allows a person to claim damages in tort) when they provide or secure designated railway passenger services. This mirrors section 50 of the Railways Act 1993 so that the same approach to civil liability is carried over to the new passenger services provisions. There are other examples of this in legislation, such as section 44 of the Railways Act 2005. If Ministers act unlawfully then judicial review is available.Responsibility for providing designated passenger services will rest largely with Great British Railways (GBR), or, in Scotland or Wales, with another public sector company. GBR will be governed by a cohesive accountability framework. Passenger rights will be protected in that framework with the GBR licence setting minimum consumer standards. The Passenger Watchdog, established to champion passenger interests, will set and monitor these standards, with the Office for Rail and Road able to take enforcement action should these standards not be met.
With reference to her Department's document entitled Transport for City Regions funding allocations, published on 4 June 2025, what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of the (a) decarbonising transport, (b) enabling healthy living and (c) promoting the modal shift from cars to public transport, walking and cycling objectives during 2027-28 to 2031-32.
The devolved (TCR) programme will enable Mayors in recipient areas to deliver schemes that align with the aforementioned objectives at a local level. The cost is reflected in the capital and resource funding allocated through these settlements and will contribute towards achievement of the overarching programme objectives. Funding allocations can be found here at Transport for City Regions funding allocations - GOV.UK
Pursuant to the Answer of 5 November 2025 to Question 85905 on Roads: Repairs and Maintenance, whether she plans to introduce a Live Labs 3 programme.
Live Labs 2 is a three-year, £30 million programme designed to support the local highways sector to adopt innovation and reduce its carbon impacts. The government will continue to support innovation in the highways sector following the conclusion of the Live Labs 2 programme and will confirm future plans in due course.
What timetable has been set for the transfer of assets, staff and responsibilities from Network Rail to Great British Railways.
Network Rail and its functions will become a foundational part of Great British Railways (GBR) as it is stood up. The detailed GBR design process is underway, considering how all functions in Network Rail, DfT Operator, publicly-owned train operating companies (TOC) and parts of the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) should transfer to GBR.
Pursuant to the answer of 17 October 2025, to Question 77644, on THINK! Campaign, what is the budgeted spending on publicity on drug driving in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26, and whether such expenditure has been revised following the July 2024 savings.
The budgeted spend on publicity on drug driving is below: Total spend to dateTotal budgeted spendFY 2024/25£35,000£35,000FY 2025/26£486,724.76£1,830,000 The increased expenditure for 2025/26 reflects the launch of a new THINK! marketing campaign to raise awareness on drug driving, in response to the increasing trend of collisions involving a driver impaired by drugs. Following the reduction in overall budget, the decision has been made to prioritise budget to focus on issues and audiences where we can have the greatest impact.
Whether the Electric Car Grant criteria will change when the new science based targets come into place.
All vehicle grants are regularly reviewed to ensure they continue to achieve their objectives and deliver value for taxpayer's money. This includes the eligibility criteria for the Electric Car Grant.
What estimate she has made of changes to staffing levels resulting from the establishment of Great British Railways.
Details on exact roles are subject to further design work. GBR will need colleagues from across the railway to continue the hard work that they do delivering for passengers. We will continue to engage with the industry on our plans for GBR.
Further to the press release, Red tape slashed to revamp high streets with new cafes and bars, of 26 July 2025, whether the Department for Transport has conducted or is planning to conduct a review of changes to the alcohol drink drive limit and potential mitigations.
The Government is committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads. We are considering a range of policies under the new Road Safety Strategy; the first for ten years. This includes the case for changing the motoring offences, such as drink driving.
Whether changes are being made to the eligibility for central government funding for Kent County Council, in the context of plans not to switch its fleet of vehicles to electric vehicles.
Local authorities have access to a range of central Government funding to support residents to transition to zero emission vehicles. Kent County Council remains eligible for their allocated £13.2 million capital and resource funding through the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund to increase the number of local public chargepoints across Kent. Their LEVI funding application has been approved to go to delivery.
Pursuant to the answer of 16 October 2025, to Question 77642, on Driving under Influence: Scotland, whether research has been commissioned or produced on the effect of drink driving limits on the economic viability of pubs and other hospitality venues which serve alcohol.
The Government is committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads. We are considering a range of policies under the new Road Safety Strategy; the first for 10 years. This includes the case for changing the motoring offences, such as drink driving. We intend to publish this by the end of the year. Research was conducted by the University of Bath in 2021, Dr Jonathan James and Professor Marco Francesconi, looking at the effect of the introduction of the lower drink drive limit in Scotland. The authors found that the “alcohol industry remained unscathed, with no changes in production, prices, or employment”:www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/s0167629621000722#sec0014 On 5 December 2014 Scotland lowered the drink drive limit to that of the majority of European countries. In 2023 Transport Scotland published casualty estimates show that the “numbers of drink-drive collisions and casualties fell by 55% and 47% respectively between 2012 and 2022 (the latest year for which estimates are available)”:www.transport.gov.scot/publication/reported-road-casualties-scotland-2023/.
Pursuant to the answer of 27 October 2025, to Question 82997, on Restoring Your Railway Fund, how much central government money was written off as a consequence of the decision to cancel the fund.
The Chancellor’s 29 July 2024 announcement confirmed that the Restoring Your Railway programme would be brought to a close, as one of the steps she was taking to address the pressures on the public finances created by unfunded policy announcements made by the previous government. No funding was "written off" as part of this process.