The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 24th January 2024:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to draw on academic expertise to help deliver financially sustainable rail infrastructure in developing countries.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about delivery of railway infrastructure in developing countries”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 10th January 2024:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to minimise disruption from train driver strikes over the festive period.
Lord Davies of Gower (Con, Department for Transport): There are currently no planned train driver strikes over the festive period. However, the ASLEF union has mandates for industrial action ending between February and April for all 14 train operating companies.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about railway strikes”The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on contracts for train manufacture and refurbishment in the UK on 12th December 2023, following a government statement on the potential closure of the Alstom manufacture site in Derby:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, last week in the other place the Department for Transport said that the contract tenders for refurbishing existing trains would be brought forward very soon. Time is short for Alstom, the only end-to-end manufacturing facility in the UK. Can the Minister give any assurances about how soon these contracts will be brought forward, because the days are now being counted down?
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about train manufacturing and refurbishment in the UK”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 12th December 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to respond to the high level of transport poverty in rural areas, as outlined in the report Getting the measure of transport poverty published by the Social Market Foundation on 15 November.
Lord Davies of Gower: The Government understands that the transport needs of communities in rural areas differ from those in urban environments for a variety of reasons including demographics, lower population density and travel distances.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about transport poverty in rural areas”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 6th December 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to strengthen the regulation of e-scooters and e-bikes following the 1,080 collisions and 7 deaths in the 12 months to June.
Lord Davies of Gower (Con, Department for Transport): The law is already clear, private e-scooters are illegal to use on public roads, cycle lanes or pavements and rental e-scooters may only be used within trial areas run by the Department. A range of motoring offences and penalties also already apply for using an e-scooter illegally and/or irresponsibly. Users can face criminal prosecution, a fixed penalty notice, points on their driving licence, and the e-scooter can be impounded.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about regulation of e-scooters and e-bikes following accidents and deaths”On 22nd November 2023, the Pedicabs (London) Bill had its second reading in the House of Lords. The Bishop of St Albans made a speech welcoming the bill, and identifying several safety concerns around Pedicabs affecting buildings owned by the Church Commissioners:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I pray for the indulgence of the House to speak very briefly in the gap. I apologise that I just missed the deadline to get my name down. Speaking so late, I find that many of the points have been made very eloquently so I have been putting lines through various paragraphs. I will be very succinct. I need to declare my interests because I want to refer to some of the Church Commissioners’ properties in London and the reports that have come from tenants and also to my role as a vice-president of the LGA.
We welcome this Bill. We think it needs a fair bit of work, and there are a number of issues that need to be resolved. I agree that for many people pedicabs are a cause for fun, not least for tourists, but the Church Commissioners, being one of the local landlords in London, have received many complaints from local people affected by unregulated pedicabs. We have listed some of them: playing loud music at night; causing local traffic congestion; charging extortionate prices; blocking pavements; sometimes blocking cycle lanes, which is a real problem and causes real danger to cyclists who are going to and from work; and, not least, their lack of insurance, so many passengers and other users are left without protection.
Continue reading “Pedicabs (London) Bill: Bishop of St Albans welcomes legislation”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 4th September 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to restrict the climate impact of London Luton Airport.
Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con, Department for Transport): The Government has ambitious plans to decarbonise all aviation, as part of our Jet Zero strategy and is already supporting a variety of technology, fuel and market-based measures to do so.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about the climate impact of London Luton Airport”On 18th July 2023, the House of Lords debated the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill in the Report stage. Votes were held on amendments to the bill, in which Bishops took part:
The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 5th June 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what alternative provisions they are making for individuals who live in areas affected by closures of rural bus routes.
Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Con): Our £20 million Rural Mobility Fund is supporting 16 innovative, demand-led minibus trials in rural and suburban areas across 15 local authorities in England. These pilots are exploring whether DRT can serve these communities more effectively than traditional public transport solutions alone.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about bus services in rural areas”The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 11th May 2023:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of their ability to combat piracy once fully automated ships have been brought into service, and of how fully automated ships and their cargo can be protected from illegal boarding in the absence of a crew.
Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about piracy in relation to automated ships”
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