Written questions by Mayer.

What the cost of a practical driving test was in each year since 1995.

The table below shows the cost of a car practical driving test on weekdays (normal hours) and on evenings, weekends and bank holidays (out of hours), from 1 April 1994 to 30 March 2009. The table also shows the cost of an extended car practical driving test for disqualified drivers. Please note that the cost of a car practical driving test has remained the same since 30 March 2009. Car Practical Driving Tests - Cost (£) Driving TestExtended TestDate IntroducedNormal HoursOut of HoursNormal HoursOut of Hours30-Mar-0962.0075.00124.00150.0001-Apr-0856.5067.00113.00134.0001-Apr-0648.5058.0097.00116.0010-Aug-0545.5055.0091.00110.0008-Dec-0442.0051.0084.00102.0014-Nov-0239.0048.0078.0096.0027-Aug-0138.0047.0076.0094.0010-Feb-9936.7546.0073.5092.0001-Apr-9832.7543.0065.5086.0001-Apr-9731.0041.0062.0082.0029-May-9528.5038.5057.0077.5001-Apr-9427.5037.5055.0077.50

With reference to her Department's press notice entitled On track and online: landmark deal to end mobile dead zones, published 26 June 2025, if she will publish the location of the rail lines due to get improved coverage with 1,000 of ultra fast fibre optic cable.

New high-count 432 fibre RoutesKMsLondon Kings Cross to Newcastle432Birmingham New Street to Stoke-on-Trent to Manchester Deansgate133London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street (via Chilterns)177London Paddington to Bristol Parkway to Cardiff235Other routes - Great Western Route26Total Km1003

Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Transport on tackling non-exhaust emissions from road transport as a source of particulate pollution.

The Government is committed to meeting legal targets for air quality, including the PM2.5 targets recently set under the Environment Act 2021. My officials have regular discussions across Government about the policies needed to ensure we meet these targets, including officials in the Department for Transport on action to reduce non-exhaust emissions from road transport.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help tackle the sources of littering in (a) Bedfordshire and (b) England.

Littering is a crime that blights communities and the environment. Local councils are usually best placed to respond to littering and related problems, in a way tailored to the community in which they occur. They have a range of enforcement tools at their disposal including fixed penalty notices of up to £500 and prosecution action which can lead to a criminal record and a fine of up to £2500. We are considering how we can further support local councils. In the meantime, we are targeting some of the more commonly littered items to reduce the presence of these on our streets. The sale of single-use vapes was banned on 1 June and a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will go live in England, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in October 2027. The DRS will introduce a redeemable deposit on single-use in-scope drinks containers which can be redeemed when the empty container is returned. Litter composition data indicates that 55% of litter by volume is made up of containers in-scope of DRS. The DRS will therefore significantly reduce this form of litter.

What steps her Department is taking to roll out rail-5g.

The Department continues to work closely with Network Rail and industry to look at solutions to improve connectivity on trains, which includes rolling out rail 5G on the rail network. Following the spending review, funding has been made available to invest in low earth orbit satellite connectivity, to improve passenger mobile connectivity. We also continue to work closely with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology to develop further interventions on the railway. The department has been working with Network Rail to deliver improved connectivity on the rail corridor. Project Reach, which will renew fibre optic cables and address signals in mainline tunnels and stations was signed 26 June 2025 between Network Rail, and telecoms companies, Neos Networks and Freshwave.

What recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits for businesses of adopting Single/Double Summer Time.

The Government believes the current daylight-saving arrangements represent the optimal use of the available daylight across the UK. Therefore, we have no plans to introduce double summertime, permanent summertime, or other such changes which would require considerable planning and action by business. Since the Government does not intend to make changes to the existing system, we will not be conducting an assessment of the impact on businesses at this time.

Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to increase opportunities for people to visit (a) theatres, (b) galleries and (c) museums.

This Government is committed to increasing opportunities for people to visit theatres, galleries, and museums.This year the Government is delivering a £270 million Arts Everywhere package, providing a major boost for arts venues, museums, libraries and heritage buildings to allow people across the nation to benefit from access to the arts and culture on their doorstep. The package includes:A new Creative Foundations Fund to invest £85 million to support arts and cultural organisations, including theatres, across England to resolve urgent issues with their estates, ensuring they can be enjoyed by visitors for many more years to come.Support for museums through the £20m Museum Renewal Fund, £25m Museum Estate and Development Fund, and £120m Public Bodies Infrastructure Fund, supporting cherished institutions to continue providing valued opportunities for visitors.£3.2 million for four cultural education programmes which will enhance access to the arts for children and young people.

What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the existing regulatory framework for open access rail operators.

The Government believes the existing regulatory framework that governs access to the railway is not fit for purpose. It has failed not only passengers but also freight operators as it is designed for each part of the railway to act in isolation, resulting in fragmented decision making and conflicting accountabilities. Our consultation set out proposals for fundamental reform of the framework, with Great British Railways as a single directing mind, able to strategically plan the best use of the network, implementing an achievable, reliable timetable, so that the services promised to passengers are delivered. Better coordination of the timetable will reduce delays, improve reliability, reduce costs and boost growth.The Government will respond to the consultation in due course.

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a centralised portal for guidance on registering local bus services in areas where (a) the traffic commissioner registers the service and (b) a local transport authority has been delegated to do so.

The government is committed to ensuring transparency in Local Transport Authority (LTA) and operator service delivery. The Bus Services (No.2) Bill was introduced on 17 December as part of the government’s ambitious plan for bus reform. Bill measures aim to enable public access to a new centralised database of information about local services including: those registered with a Traffic Commissioner; those registered with an LTA where registration has been delegated to the LTA, and services operating in a franchised area. The Traffic Commissioners also publish centralised guidance on registering local bus services on GOV.UK, titled “A guide to registering and operating local bus services in England and Wales”. This guidance includes detailed information on the roles of Traffic Commissioners and LTAs, the types of services that require registration, and the procedures that apply in different areas. Where an LTA is responsible for registering local bus services in its area, the guidance provides a link to the relevant information published by that authority.

Food and Rural Affairs, what his Department’s policy is on the transportation of live lobsters through (a) postal and (b) courier services within the UK.

Animal welfare legislation protects all animals from being transported in a way likely to cause injury or suffering. Lobsters and other live decapod crustaceans are protected from injury or unnecessary suffering during transportation by a general duty of care provision in Article 4 of The Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006 (WATEO) and equivalent national legislation in Wales. WATEO requires that animals are transported in receptacles or means of transport under conditions (in particular with regard to space, ventilation, temperature and security) and with such supply of liquid and oxygen, as are appropriate for the species concerned.

What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on tackling anti-social car driving.

Ministers and officials meet with their counterparts on a regular basis and discuss a wide range of topics.Tackling anti-social behaviour is a top priority for the Government, and a key part of the Safer Streets Mission.On 25 February 2025, the Crime and Policing Bill was introduced to Parliament. The Bill includes proposals to give the police greater powers to clamp down on all vehicles involved in anti-social behaviour, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before seizing these vehicles.On 28 May, the Government launched a 6-week consultation on proposals to allow the police to dispose of seized vehicles which have been used anti-socially from 14 days to 48 hours.These measures will strengthen the law and send a clear message that antisocial car driving will not be tolerated.

Whether her Department is taking steps to introduce formal tribunal rules for traffic commissioner tribunal functions.

I understand the important role that the Traffic Commissioners perform with regards to the licensing and regulation of the HGV and PSV industries, and road-user safety.My Department are currently considering a range of reform options aiming to ensure that the powers and functions of Traffic Commissioners remain robust and effective. The introduction of formal tribunal rules will form part of these considerations.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of (a) recent trends in the level of drought and (b) the potential impact of drought on his Department's tree‑planting plans.

We continue to monitor and adapt to the impact that drought conditions can have on trees, particularly for young trees which are most susceptible. The Government has introduced extraordinary measures to support trees that have suffered because of drought conditions and works closely with tree planting delivery partners to respond to conditions across England. The Nature for Climate Fund has also invested £1 million into research to understand how trees are responding to extreme weather events, including drought, assessing species robustness and resilience. More broadly, the Water Companies’ Drought Code of Practice includes an exemption during hosepipe bans to allow for the continued watering of trees planted in the last three years.

What steps his Department is taking to (a) update and (b) improve NHS IT systems.

We are investing more than £2 billion in National Health Service technology and digital to run essential services and drive NHS productivity improvements.In June 2023, NHS England agreed a Health Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which is a strategic agreement between the NHS and Microsoft and underpins the national Microsoft licensing framework for NHS organisations. It delivers significant discounts and standardised licensing across the NHS and enables access to services.Security and compliance are significantly strengthened through national access to Microsoft Defender, Office 365 security tools, and integration with the NHS Cyber Security Operations Centre. These tools standardise threat detection, data protection, and governance across the system, ensuring a consistent and elevated security posture. The MOU also supports a national IT operating model with service desks operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, centralised incident management, and streamlined onboarding.Operationally, the MOU delivers cost savings by eliminating redundant local contracts and enabling licence reconfiguration. It also positions the NHS for future innovation, with early access to artificial intelligence tools like Microsoft Copilot already embedded in the agreement. This ensures NHS organisations can scale digital transformation efforts while maintaining alignment with national strategy and funding models.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing local transport authorities to compel highways authorities to provide parking provision for shared mobility schemes.

The Department has not made a detailed assessment of this. It is up to local transport authorities to decide what parking provision to make in their areas, including for shared mobility schemes such as car clubs. In doing so they have to take into account, among other things, their statutory duties as set out in the Equality Act 2010.

Whether she plans to bring forward regulations under section 141A of the Transport Act 2000 to improve the collection of centrally held data on local coach journeys.

The government is committed to ensuring transparency in Local Transport Authority and operator service delivery. The Bus Services (No.2) Bill was introduced on 17 December as part of the government’s ambitious plan for bus reform. The Bill will amend powers in section 141A of the Transport Act 2000 to enable the Secretary of State to bring forward regulations relating to the central collection and publishing of data about local bus services – including about registration and performance. Coach journeys may fall within the scope of any regulations made, if they are operating a local service as defined in the Transport Act 1985.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of rail infrastructure schemes in the East of England on regional economic growth.

The Department has not made a combined assessment of regional economic growth of all projects relating to the East of England region. The Department undertakes appraisal of business cases on a project-by-project basis. This appraisal attempts to quantity impacts such as user benefits, environmental impacts, economic impacts and any other wider impacts.

What estimate she has made of the number of children who will become eligible for free school meals following the extension to households in receipt of Universal Credit in (a) Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard constituency, (b) Bedfordshire, (c) the East of England and (d) England in the 2026-27 academic year.

This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child poverty. We have now announced that we are extending free school meals to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit from September 2026. This will lift 100,000 children across England out of poverty and put £500 back in families’ pockets, supporting parents in decisive action to improve lives ahead of the Child Poverty Strategy coming later this year.Providing over half a million children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds with a free, nutritious lunchtime meal every school day will also lead to higher attainment, improved behaviour and better outcomes, meaning children get the best possible education and chance to succeed in work and life.We have published data on the number of children who could benefit from expanded provision by constituency/region/local authority and this can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/free-school-meals-expansion-impact-on-poverty-levels.

What recent assessment she has made of trends in the level of rural crime in (a) Bedfordshire and (b) the East of England; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce that level.

Rural crime can have devastating consequences for countryside communities and the agricultural sector. That is why this Government is committed to reducing crime in rural areas.Under our Safer Streets Mission reforms, rural communities will be safeguarded, with tougher measures to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, strengthened neighbourhood policing and stronger measures to prevent theft of farm equipment and fly-tipping.The Government is committed to strong neighbourhood policing for everyone in England and Wales, wherever they live. On 10 April, the Prime Minister outlined further details about our Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, including that by July, every community, including rural communities, will have named and contactable officers dedicated to addressing their issues.This financial year we will be providing the first Home Office funding since 2023 for the National Rural Crime Unit (NRCU), as well as continuing funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU). The funding boost of over £800,000 in total will help the units tackle those crimes that predominantly affect our rural communities.This will allow these specialist units to continue their work in tackling rural and wildlife crime which can pose unique challenges for policing given the scale and isolation of rural areas.The National Police Chiefs’ Council Wildlife and Rural Crime Strategy 2022-2025 provides a framework through which policing, and its partners can work together to tackle the most prevalent threats and emerging issues which predominantly affect rural communities NPCC-Wildlife-Rural-Crime-Strategy-2022-2025.pdf (nwcu.police.uk). We are working closely with the NPCC to deliver the next iteration of their strategy, to ensure the government’s Safer Streets Mission benefits every community no matter where they live, including rural communities.

Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department provides to local authorities on increasing the provision of land for food-growing allotments.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) is clear that planning policies and decisions should enable and support healthy lives, including through the provision of allotments. The NPPF also makes clear that open spaces and recreational buildings and land should not be built on unless there is clear evidence it is no longer required; equivalent or better provision is secured in a suitable location; or development of the site is for alternative sports and recreational provision, the benefits of which clearly outweigh the loss of the current or former use.