Every parliamentary written question tabled by Richard Holden this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 881–900 of 1,251 · Department for Transport
What the timetable is for the approval and delivery of Lower Thames Crossing in light of the change of responsibilities for the project.
As with all Tier 1 projects, the Lower Thames Crossing is governed and funded by Government, with delivery by National Highways. The Development Consent Order was approved in March 2025 and enabling works will begin this year. Government is exploring funding options, including private finance, to support mid 2030s completion.
What meetings her Department has held with motorcycling organisations on the forthcoming Integrated National Transport Strategy; and if she will recognise motorcycling as a means of transport for access to work and education.
The Department has conducted extensive engagement with stakeholders and members of the public to inform the strategy and has heard directly from motorcyclists and motorcycle representative groups including Motorcycle Action Group through our Call for Ideas and Regional Roadshow. The insights gathered through our engagement activities have been analysed and are directly informing the strategy as it continues to evolve. Officials also met bilaterally with the Motorcycle Action Group on 29 August 2025 to respond to a range of matters of concern to motorcyclists which included an update on the development of the strategy. An update was also provided at the most recent meeting of the officials led Motorcycle Strategic Focus Group on 15 September, chaired by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.
Pursuant to the Answer of 31 October 2025 to Question 84275, how much highways maintenance funding was provided to local authorities in aggregate in real terms in each year since 2019-20, including 2025-26.
Funding YearTotal in real terms (2024 to 2025 millions of £)Total in cash terms (millions of £)2019 to 20201,5751,2782020 to 20212,0171,7222021 to 20221,6361,4002022 to 20231,5121,3852023 to 20241,7991,7352024 to 20251,5351,5352025 to 20261,912*1,963Total11,98611,018 The above table includes highways maintenance capital funding from the Department for Transport, including the Highways Maintenance Block, Integrated Transport Block, Potholes Funding, Network North, the Local Transport Grant, and highways funding that has been consolidated into City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements (CRSTS) between 2022/23 to 2024/25. The figures also include funding from the Pothole Action Fund, the Wet Weather Resilience Fund, and the Traffic Signals Maintenance Scheme. The £226 million Local Transport Grant of 2025/26 is for local transport and maintenance more widely. Integrated Transport Block funding is for local transport maintenance and enhancements. *For 2025/26, the figures are exclusive of baseline highways maintenance funding and Integrated Transport Block funding that has been consolidated into CRSTS funding. The Department has not split out how much of this funding is for highways maintenance as, by the nature of the funding, it is consolidated transport funding for local authorities to decide how best to use. The real terms figure provided for 2025/26 would thus be higher if it were possible to include these figures. These figures are presented in real terms and adjusted for inflation using 2024-25 prices. GDP deflators as of 30 September 2025 were used.
What assessments she has made of potential duplication of functions between Network Rail and Great British Railways, and their (a) cost and (b) impact, during the transition period.
Network Rail and its functions will become a foundational part of Great British Railways (GBR) as it is stood up. The 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. The costs of implementation are being considered as part of the business case for GBR setup.
Whether she plans to enable track access agreements longer than five years on the railway network.
The Government recognises the importance of certainty for operators when entering into track access agreements. The new access framework will enable GBR to offer this longer-term certainty to third parties – including contracts beyond 5 years.
Whether Great British Railways will be required to publish data on (a) permanently cancelled services and (b) decisions to withdraw particular routes.
GBR's planned services will be a matter of public record. GBR will continue to be subject to the closures regime for rail services.
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Railways Bill on fare affordability for passengers on low incomes.
The government recognises the importance of balancing the affordability of rail fares for passengers and the cost to taxpayers of contributions to the railway. As set out in the Railways Bill and the government’s recent consultation response, in the future GBR will have significant responsibility for setting and managing individual fares, reflecting its role as the directing mind for the railway. The new framework will be balanced by the Secretary of State’s role in setting overall parameters for fares, and will also ensure continued safeguarding of existing statutory discount schemes, including those for disabled, senior, and younger passengers, currently delivered as railcards.
What performance indicators Great British Railways will be required to publish on (a) punctuality, (b) reliability and (c) overcrowding.
In March this year, we made station-specific performance information available to passengers for the first time. This shows reliability and punctuality at each station. GBR will be transparent in the operation of its passenger services. It will be for GBR, through its integrated business plan, which will be signed off by the Transport Secretary, to develop a view on how its key performance indicators are expressed. These will then be tested by the Office of Rail and Road. The Office of Rail and Road will have a role in monitoring GBR's performance and advising the Transport Secretary.
What steps she plans to take to ensure that track access charges for operators outside Great British Railways will not be increased to offset the absence of access charges for Great British Railways-operated services or for other purposes during the court of their licenses.
The Government is fundamentally reforming the track access charging framework to remove complexities and the complicated ‘money go round’ that would have required GBR to charge itself for using its own infrastructure. GBR will establish and consult on a new fairer simpler charging framework. The ORR will be a statutory consultee and in its role as a robust, independent appeals body hold GBR’s decisions under the framework to account. To ensure transparency, GBR will need to carry out and publish a cost apportionment process which will account for the cost of providing rail infrastructure and the costs of its own passenger services using GBR managed infrastructure had they been subject to charges.
What assessment her Department has made of the regulatory changes required to enable the commercial deployment of autonomous ride-hailing services at scale in the UK, similar to those operating in cities including San Francisco, Phoenix and Los Angeles.
The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 (the Act) sets the foundation for enabling the safe deployment of self-driving vehicles on roads in Great Britain with full implementation of the Act planned for the second half of 2027. Earlier this year, government announced the decision to accelerate implementation of the Automated Passenger Services permitting scheme to Spring 2026. This permitting scheme can help to facilitate pilots of commercial self-driving passenger services with no safety driver, from spring 2026. Any companies looking to deploy their vehicles will need to meet safety requirements and gain local authority consent. The deployment of these services as self-driving vehicles is enabled through the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act 2018. To be seen as self-driving, the vehicle must, in the opinion of the Secretary of State for Transport, be capable of safely driving themselves without human oversight or intervention for some or all of journey. The Vehicle Certification Agency will undertake the assessment, on behalf of the Secretary of State, to assess whether a vehicle is capable of driving itself without human intervention.
Pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2025 to Question 86749 on Road Traffic Control: Oxford, whether the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency has provided vehicle keeper data to, or received income from, any third-party organisations or agents acting on behalf of Oxfordshire County Council since July 4 2024.
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency has provided vehicle keeper data to and received income from third-party organisations or agents acting on behalf of Oxfordshire County Council since 4 July 2024.
Whether her Department plans to publish annual data on passenger (a) complaints and (b) resolutions under Great British Railways.
ORR publishes biannual statistics on the volume and cause of complaints made to train operating companies, including the response times. We expect ORR to continue to collect and publish core industry data in the future.
What information her Department holds on the criteria that will be used by Great British Railways to allocate funding for (a) infrastructure and (b) rolling stock.
Spending Review 25 and CP7 set railway budgets up to and including financial year 2028/29. The next Periodic Review and future Spending Reviews determine funding levels beyond 2028/29. While it’s government’s responsibility to allocate funding for GBR to use, including for infrastructure and rolling stock activity, it will be GBR’s responsibility, as the railways’ directing mind, to decide how it intends to carry out that activity within the funding allocated.
If she will take steps to ensure that all proposals for a third runway at Heathrow Airport will avoid unnecessary cost and delay, including options that would require construction over the M25.
The Government is clear that any expansion at Heathrow must be delivered in a way that minimises cost for passengers and customers. The scheme will be privately financed, including both the core runway infrastructure and any related improvements to surface access. Promoters are expected to engage constructively with relevant authorities, such as National Highways, to develop solutions that support the wider transport network and minimise disruption.
Whether she plans to set a national framework for discounted fare schemes.
It is not clear what a “national framework for discounted fare schemes” would mean. The Railways Bill will safeguard existing statutory discounts for disabled persons, younger and older passengers, which today are delivered via railcards. Other concessionary discounts such as veterans’ and 26-30 railcards are also important, and there are no current plans to withdraw these offers.
In what circumstances she would extend track access rights for existing operators on the network.
Track Access Rights are managed independently by the Office of Rail and Road.
Whether it is her policy that the views of airlines operating long-haul services should be central to determining the necessary length of a third runway at an expanded Heathrow Airport.
As the users of an expanded Heathrow Airport, the views of airlines will be vital for informing the Heathrow Expansion programme. To that end, as part of the invitation for scheme proposals for Heathrow Expansion, the department asked promoters to provide views from airlines on their proposals. The Secretary of State has also met with key senior airline representatives to understand their views. On 22 October, we formally commenced the review of the ANPS and set out our intention to announce a single scheme to inform the review. Any final details of any scheme, including the runway length, will be considered further as part of the review and by promoters in preparing their DCO applications. If any amendments are needed as a result of the ANPS review, we will consult on a revised ANPS by next summer which will provide an opportunity for stakeholders to provide views. In addition, we are also planning to hold stakeholder roundtables during the review, including with airlines.
Pursuant to the Answer of 7 November 2025 to Question 86322 on Charging Points and Hydrogen Fuelling Stations, what assessment her Department has made of the value for money of public funding allocated specifically to hydrogen refuelling infrastructure since April 2024.
All public funding for hydrogen refuelling infrastructure since April 2024 has been invested through our delivery partners Innovate UK, part of UKRI. Innovate UK assess value for money of applications submitted for research, development and demonstration projects as part of a standardised process. In addition, Innovate UK and the Department for Transport have commissioned an independent monitoring study to assess the outputs and early outcomes from all schemes included in the Innovate UK Land and Maritime Transport Portfolio from 2022. This study is expected to report in autumn 2026. As part of the original business case for ZEHID, the programme as a whole had a VfM assessment of very high value for money noting that, as is typical for R&D projects, the final scope of the projects has changed. Ongoing evaluation activities are underway as part of the programme.
Pursuant to the Answer of 16 September 2025 to Question 75870 on Parking: Pedestrian Areas, what the terms of reference are for the new research on pavement parking; what the budget is; and how the research contract will be awarded.
The Terms of Reference are yet to be drafted, however, we have commissioned the design stage of a study to update and strengthen our evidence base on the extent and impact of pavement parking. The purpose of the research will be to understand not only where and how pavement parking occurs but how it affects people’s lives, and particularly the lives of vulnerable road users. This research will enable the Department to evaluate the impact of any future changes to pavement parking policies. The design stage has been awarded to Frontier Economics and SYSTRA under an existing call-off contract, with agreed framework rates (under Public Contracts Regulations 2015). The budget is still being agreed. Budget and commissioning routes for further stages of the study cannot be specified at this stage.
Pursuant to the Answer of 28 October 2025 to Question 82989 on Level 7 apprenticeships, whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Education on the potential impact of this policy on workforce availability in the transport sector.
No meeting occurred between the Secretary of State and the Department for Education Secretary of State regarding Level 7 apprenticeship funding, as the responsibility now lies with the Department for Work and Pensions’ Secretary of State. The Government is prioritising funding to support young entrants, helping them take their first steps in rewarding careers, particularly in transport. The removal of Level 7 apprenticeships for those over 22 is expected to have a negligible impact on the transport sector, as confirmed by the Department for Work and Pensions during the Transport Select Committee on Skills on 5 November 2025. Level 7 apprenticeships remain funded for learners under 22-years-old as part of Government reforms, recognising their value for young people.