Written questions by Robertson.

A) what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of delays in the processing of taxi and private hire driver licence renewals by licensing authorities, including Transport for London, on drivers; b) what estimate she has made of the number of drivers who were unable to work due to licensing delays in (i) 2024, (ii) 2025 and (iii) 2026 to date; c) what assessment she has made of the potential impact of these delays on the income of affected drivers; and d) whether her Department has issued guidance to licensing authorities on maximum processing times for licence renewals.

The administration of the taxi and private hire vehicle licensing regime is a matter for licensing authorities. The Department does not collect data on the processing times of licence applications but expects authorities to administer the system efficiently, including the processing of all applications when they have the necessary information.The Department’s best practice guidance to licensing authorities in England makes clear that taxi and private hire vehicle licensing is a statutory function, and it is important for authorities to consider how best to deliver this service in a timely and efficient manner.

With reference to the Answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 120039 on Department for Transport: Aviation, what the purpose was of the flight to Colombia; which Ministers and senior officials approved the visit; how many officials travelled on that occasion and at what grade; what the cost was of the visit; and whether an assessment was made of whether those engagements could be (a) conducted remotely and (b) combined with other travel.

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

With reference to the Answer of 29 April 2026 to Question 129535 on British Transport Police: Finance, whether the Department plans to absorb the £256.2 million currently recovered from Train Operating Companies through Police Service Agreements into the public finances as services transfer into public ownership under Great British Railways; and what estimate it has made of the impact on departmental expenditure.

Awaiting answer.

With reference to the Answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 120039 on Department for Transport: Aviation, what the purpose was of the flight to Lebanon; which Ministers and senior officials approved the visit; how many officials travelled on that occasion and at what grade; what the cost was of the visit; and whether an assessment was made of whether those engagements could be (a) conducted remotely and (b) combined with other travel.

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

With reference to the Answer of 24 April 2026 to Question 128421, whether her Department has plans to collect data on collisions or injuries involving e-bikes operated through hire schemes.

The Government's English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act will enable local leaders to license shared cycle schemes. The Secretary of State will set minimum licence conditions which could include data sharing requirements, such as on collisions and injuries. Data sharing requirements, alongside other aspects of licensing implementation, will be determined following public consultation.

If she will publish the DVSA's fees strategy.

As the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) fees are set out in legislation, any changes require a statutory process, including public consultation and subsequent legislative amendments. DVSA will publish details of any fee changes when consulting as part of the statutory process.

What recent assessment she has made of the performance of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in its regulation of the UK fishing fleet.

The performance of the MCA is assessed on a number of levels through internal and external auditing functions. With regards to the UK fishing fleet the MCA continues to work with the sector to improve the safety of fishers, since the introduction of the Fishing Industry Safety Strategy in 2017 fatalities have reduced from 6.8 per year in the five years prior to 2017 to 4.2 per year in the last five years. We will always strive to do all we can to drive this number down further.

What funding her Department has provided directly to DFTO Train Operating Companies to increase the number of rail training places.

The Department does not provide funding to DfT Operator Limited (DFTO) specifically for rail training places as part of the Department’s funding of train services. It is the responsibility of all train operating companies, including those currently operated by DFTO, to establish their own training requirements and fund these through their agreed budgets.

What assessment her Department has made of increases in administrative regulatory burden arising from recent Civil Aviation Authority policy and guidance changes, and how these increases are compatible with the Government’s stated commitment in the Regulation Action Plan to a 25% reduction in such burdens.

Awaiting answer.

Pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2026 to WPQ 120039, what the purpose was of the flight to Sierra Leone; which Ministers and senior officials approved the visit; how many officials travelled on that occasion and at what grade; what the cost was of the visit; and whether an assessment was made of whether those engagements could be (a) conducted remotely and (b) combined with other travel. (129385).

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

What the total expenditure has been to date by Network Rail, including Network Rail Property and any contractors engaged by it, on work related to the planning application for the redevelopment of London Liverpool Street Station; and what proportion of that expenditure has been incurred in each financial year since the project commenced.

Awaiting answer.

If she will provide a list of training programmes used by civil servants in her department since 2020.

Awaiting answer.

Whether loss of revenue from user charges at the Dartford Crossings is accounted for in the Department's finances.

The Government's preferred financing option at this stage is the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model. Under the RAB model, ownership and operations of the Dartford Crossing would transfer to a new regulated private sector entity, which would be responsible for operating and maintaining both the Dartford Crossing and the new Lower Thames Crossing, ensuring a consistent and reliable service. This entity will be overseen by a regulator to ensure it performs and protects users. Charges from the Dartford Crossing and the new Lower Thames Crossing would be received by the regulated entity under this model. This means charges will be used to meet the costs of providing and operating the Crossings. This approach brings in private capital to fund the majority of construction, which will deliver value for taxpayers and reduce the overall pressure on public budgets. The Department has built the effect of this into its financial forecasts.

Pursuant to the Answer of 22 April 2026 to Question 127229 on British Transport Police: Finance, whether the cost of the British Transport Police has been included in the published cost estimates for rail nationalisation; and what estimate she has made of the net additional cost to the taxpayer arising from the transfer of these funding responsibilities to publicly owned rail operators.

Awaiting answer.

Pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2026 to WPQ 120039, what the purpose was of the flight to Argentina; which Ministers and senior officials approved the visit; how many officials travelled on that occasion and at what grade; what the cost was of the visit; and whether an assessment was made of whether those engagements could be (a) conducted remotely and (b) combined with other travel.

Awaiting answer.

Pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2026 to WPQ 120039, what the purpose was of each flight to Azerbaijan; which Ministers and senior officials approved each visit; how many officials travelled on each occasion and at what grade; what the cost was of each visit; and whether an assessment was made of whether those engagements could be (a) conducted remotely and (b) combined with other travel.

Awaiting answer.

Pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 120039 on Department for Transport: Aviation, what the purpose was of each flight to Slovakia; which Ministers and senior officials approved each visit; how many officials travelled on each occasion and at what grade; what the cost was of each visit; and whether an assessment was made of whether those engagements could be (a) conducted remotely and (b) combined with other travel.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation

Pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 120039 on Department for Transport: Aviation, what the purpose was of each flight to Tanzania; which Ministers and senior officials approved each visit; how many officials travelled on each occasion and at what grade; what the cost was of each visit; and whether an assessment was made of whether those engagements could be (a) conducted remotely and (b) combined with other travel.

The Department for Transport (DfT) has supported the protection of UK nationals, UK economic interests and the resilience of global maritime trade by strengthening maritime security overseas, particularly in relation to terrorism and major security threats. DfT has acted to build and enhance international maritime security capacity by working collaboratively with partner states to improve compliance with the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code, thereby reducing risk to the UK’s supply chains, energy routes and the UK‑registered and wider Red Ensign Group shipping fleet. In March 2025 two DfT officials (1 x Higher Executive Officer and 1 x Senior Executive Officer) visited Tanzania to deliver capacity development workshops, undertake port security surveys and participate in a Women in Maritime symposium. The visit was approved by a Deputy Director (Senior Civil Servant) in DfT’s Transport Security Division in line with departmental policy. The total cost of the visit was £8,584.42. As part of the planning process, consideration was given to whether the engagement could be conducted remotely or combined with other official travel. While some preparatory and follow up activity was undertaken virtually, aspects of the engagement required on site delivery and therefore could not be fully conducted remotely.

Pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2026 to WPQ 120039, what the purpose was of the flight to Sierra Leone; which Ministers and senior officials approved the visit; how many officials travelled on that occasion and at what grade; what the cost was of the visit; and whether an assessment was made of whether those engagements could be (a) conducted remotely and (b) combined with other travel.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

How many driving test centres are in operation; what their maximum testing capacity is; what the utilisation rate is of each centre; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to booking arrangements on (i) waiting times and (ii) test slot utilisation.

Answers to written questions 101471 of 6 January, 104860 of 22 January, 122532 of 25 March, and 124195 of 17 April 2026, respectively provide data on how many full-time equivalent (FTE) driving examiners (DE) employed by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) were (a) in post and (b) delivering practical car driving tests for each month from July 2024 to March 2026.In March 2026, DVSA provided car practical driving tests from 318 driving test centres (DTC). The national average utilisation figure was 75.74% in that month. The attached spreadsheet (WPQ-00066952) provides the utilisation figures for all DTCs in the same period. The capacity of each DTC will vary depending on the services it provides and whether DEs work full or part-time.DVSA takes a view of the number of DEs it needs, based on demand at a national level, then split down to test centre. The agency is working on a detailed view of DE requirements, based on demand forecast modelling at test centre level, rather than nationally. DVSA expects to have that view in summer 2026.Utilisation of DE time measures how much of a DE’s available deployable working time is used to deliver driving tests, rather than individual effort or productivity.The intention of the forthcoming changes to practical test booking arrangements will make the system fairer for genuine learners by reducing exploitation and churn. Other measures DVSA is deploying (such as recruiting more examiners and carrying out more overtime) are designed to improve waiting times and utilisation.