Written questions by Jones.

What steps she is taking to tackle (a) fraudulent V62 applications and (b) car cloning.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has robust measures in place to help prevent fraudulent V62 applications being processed. When a V62 application is received for a vehicle for which there is already a registered keeper on record, the DVLA will write to the current keeper to check if they still have the vehicle. If the registered keeper confirms that they are still in possession of the vehicle, the V62 application will not be processed, no new vehicle registration certificate will be issued and further investigations will be made.The law requires that anyone who supplies number plates for road use in the UK must be registered with the DVLA. It is a legal requirement for suppliers to carry out checks to ensure that number plates are only sold to those who can prove they are entitled to the registration number. Number plate suppliers must also keep records of the plates they have supplied. The DVLA is currently working with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and other government departments on ways to improve the identification and enforcement of number plate crime.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) telegraph poles and (b) other infrastructure on inclusive mobility; and what steps she is taking to make streets more accessible.

Accessibility is a priority for this Government. In order to reduce pavement clutter and ensure that footways are accessible to everyone, there are requirements on telecom operators and other operators to share apparatus and to use underground lines where practicable. There are regulations in place to support this and the Cabinet Siting and Pole Siting Code of Practice 2016 also includes guidance on how telegraph poles should be sited to account for health and safety and access concerns. The Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) requires public authorities to have due regard to certain equality considerations when making decisions on matters of this sort. This is to ensure that they consider how their policies, programmes, and services, including, for example, decisions on the siting of apparatus of this sort, will affect people with different protected characteristics. Public authorities are also required to monitor the impact of their decisions on those with protected characteristics.

With reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport in response to the question from the hon. Member for Wokingham of 10 October 2024, Official Report, column 441, when further information in writing will be provided.

Given the complex issues, my officials have worked closely with Network Rail to ensure a clear and helpful response, which I understand has been sent to the Hon. member today.

Pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2024 to Question 7092 on Heathrow Airport: Railways, when her Department intends to publish a plan for future rail investment.

We have announced our intention to conduct a thorough review of the previous government's transport plans to ensure that our transport infrastructure portfolio drives economic growth and delivers value for money for taxpayers. Decisions about individual projects will be informed by the review process and confirmed in due course.

If she will make it her policy to align the UK Emissions Trading System with the EU Emissions Trading System.

The Department for Transport contributes towards policy development on the UK Emissions Trading Scheme on transport related matters. Under the terms of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), the UK Government and EU agreed to consider linking our respective carbon pricing schemes and to cooperate on carbon pricing.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of a temporary blue badge scheme for those experiencing temporary disability as a result of illness or injury.

The Blue Badge scheme is primarily about helping people with a long-term disability, that affects their capacity to access the goods and services they need to use. Anyone may be entitled to a badge if they meet the eligibility criteria. The Department has issued local authorities with advice on how they could use existing powers to provide locally determined parking concessions within their areas. For example, some local authorities grant parking concessions to assist their elderly residents. The same powers could be used to help those with temporary disabilities. The guidance is available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/people-with-severe-temporary-impairments-advice-to-local-authorities.

If she will make make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the amount of time before a driving theory test expires.

It is important road safety knowledge and hazard perception skills are up-to- date at the critical point a person drives unsupervised for the first time.The maximum duration of two years between passing the theory test and a subsequent practical test is in place to ensure a candidate’s road safety knowledge and ability to identify developing hazards is current. This validity period is set in legislation and the Government has no current plans to lay further legislation to extend it. Ensuring learner drivers have current relevant knowledge and skills is a vital part of the learning to drive process as new drivers are disproportionately casualties on our roads. Learners therefore need to pass another theory test if their two-year theory test certificate expires.

What steps he is taking to increase job creation in ports.

Our mission to drive growth in the economy will bring with it increasing trade in high-value goods, and our mission to become a clean energy superpower will boost jobs within and around ports engaged in helping to deliver offshore wind and other clean energy development. Investment in ports and supply chains has been identified as a priority area for the newly established National Wealth Fund (NWF), which has allocated £7.3 billion of additional capitalisation to the UK Infrastructure Bank.

Whether she plans to update the document entitled Future of Freight: a long-term plan.

The cross-modal freight sector is vital for the UK's economic prosperity, security, and well-being. An efficient logistics sector supports all other sectors of the economy and facilitates international trade through import, export, and market access.We do not plan to update the previous ‘Future of Freight: a long-term plan’ document, but the Government is committed to working with the sector and will set out its concrete next steps in this area as soon as possible.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of a western rail link to Heathrow Airport.

The Government is considering its position on future rail investment in the context of our critical missions and the availability of public finances.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of train toilet provision on the Waterloo-Reading line.

Department officials work closely with South Western Railway to ensure that adequate toilet facilities are provided to passengers on trains and at stations wherever possible, and I will ensure that officials raise this matter with South Western Railway. I am pleased to say that South Western Railway will be introducing brand new Class 701 trains with fully accessibly toilets, and will continue to roll these out, including on the Waterloo to Reading line as soon as possible.