Every parliamentary written question tabled by Laura Kyrke-Smith this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 1–10 of 10 · Department for Transport
What assessment she has made of trends in the level of variations in CCTV quality, coverage and functionality across train operating companies and rail infrastructure providers.
The railway is a CCTV-rich environment, with over 125,000 cameras across the network. CCTV systems are owned and managed by individual train operating companies and Network Rail, and the Department does not hold a centralised dataset on variations in qual...
In what proportion of rail-related criminal investigations CCTV footage was requested but could not be used due to issues including image quality, equipment failure and insufficient coverage.
The British Transport Police made 9,986 requests to rail operators for CCTV in 2025/26 but they are unable to provide a breakdown of whether the footage was usable or not as it would require extensive manual searching of data records and could only be pro...
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help ensure that there is the right level of electric vehicle maintenance and repair skills to support the projected increase in electric vehicle adoption.
The Government is committed to ensuring the UK has the skills needed to support the growing number of zero emission electric vehicles. According to the Institute of the Motor Industry, around 71,942 technicians (26% of the UK’s total) are qualified to work on electric vehicles, which currently make up about 4.2% of all licensed vehicles. The proportion of electrified vehicles (including hybrids) is estimated to be slightly higher, at 13%. The Office for Zero Emission Vehicles has endorsed the Institute of the Motor Industry’s TechSafe scheme, which ensures technicians have the skills required to safely repair zero emission electric vehicles and provides consumers with a register of qualified professionals.
What steps she is taking to raise awareness about new Highway Code rules.
Following updates to the Highway Code in 2022, the department ran large-scale THINK! advertising campaigns to raise awareness of the changes. Via the THINK! campaign, we are also running year-round radio filler adverts encouraging compliance with the guidance to improve safety for those walking, cycling and horse riding. We will also continue to promote the changes via THINK! and Department for Transport social media channels, as well as through partner organisations. However, as set out in the road safety strategy, more work is needed to continue embedding these changes. We are considering options in this area, and further details will be shared in due course.
What the average waiting time is for a driving test in Aylesbury; and when the backlog for those tests will be cleared.
The average waiting time in weeks, as of October 2025, at Aylesbury driving test centre (DTC) was 19 weeks. The average waiting time in weeks, as of October 2025, for other DTC’s that might serve customers in the area, are shown below: Bletchley – 24 weeksHigh Wycombe – 5 weeksLeighton Buzzard – 24 weeksOxford – 24 weeks The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times. The agency is intensifying its efforts to reduce waiting times and improve access to driving tests that will break down barriers to opportunity as part of the government’s Plan for Change. At the Transport Select committee on 12 November 2025, the Secretary of State for Transport confirmed the latest DVSA modelling shows it is not possible to meet a 7-week waiting time by summer 2026. There are several factors driving higher demand for tests, and it is not currently possible to say when waiting times will reduce to 7-weeks or fewer. The Secretary of State will be working closely with DVSA in addressing this important issue. In the coming months, DVSA will:change the booking service to allow only learner car drivers to book and manage their testsintroduce a limit on the number of times a learner car driver can move or swap a test to twice and also limit the area they can move a test to once booked.make use of Ministry of Defence (MOD) driving examiners for up to 12 months to help tackle driving test waiting times.
What steps her Department is taking to improve collaboration across local authority borders on bus routes.
Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) already work closely together when tendering bus routes that cross shared boundaries, and in delivering their Bus Service Improvement Plans. There are also requirements set out in the Transport Act 2000 for LTAs to take account of the effect of an Enhanced Partnership on neighbouring areas, and for policies on bus services in neighbouring LTA areas to be considered when developing any franchising arrangements. The Government has updated its bus franchising guidance to LTAs to make clear that they should consider cross-boundary services during any franchising assessment process. This includes as part of the commercial case, where they should set out how they intend to facilitate cross-boundary services to deliver relevant targets in both authorities’ areas. In addition, the Government’s Bus Services Act 2025 puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders. This Bill is intended to ensure bus services reflect the needs of the communities that rely on them right across England, including services that cross local authority boundaries. The Act gives franchising authorities greater scope to grant service permits to operators wishing to provide non-franchised services which enter a franchising area from another area. Franchising authorities will be able to take account of these proposed cross-boundary services’ benefits in all the areas where the service would run, not just the franchising area as before. This will enable franchising authorities to better harness the additionality the market can provide in delivering these important services and take a more holistic approach to cross-boundary bus provision.
Whether her Department plans to respond to findings of the consultation on Managing Pavement Parking which closed on 22 November 2020; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of granting local authorities outside London more enforcement powers to manage pavement parking.
The Department has been considering all the views expressed in response to the 2020 consultation and is currently working through the policy options and the appropriate means of delivering them. As soon as the Government has decided its preferred way forward, we will announce the next steps and publish our formal response. In the meantime, local authorities can make use of existing powers to restrict and enforce pavement parking.
What steps she is taking to ensure HS2 Ltd delivers value for money.
We are carefully reviewing the position the government has inherited on rail infrastructure, including how to best support economic growth as well as addressing delivery and capacity challenges. We are looking at ways to improve HS2 Ltd's delivery and HMG...
What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of Chiltern Railways' proposals to bring in (a) replacement and (b) additional carriages to improve capacity on their existing routes.
The Department continues to work closely with Chiltern Railways to support the delivery of its long-term fleet strategy and has recently approved Chiltern Railways’ Mk3 fleet replacement Outline Business Case (OBC). Chiltern now needs to produce the Final...
If she will have discussions with HS2 Ltd to ensure that HS2 works in Aylesbury constituency result in minimal disruption.
The Department and I are working closely with HS2 Ltd to ensure that, as we deliver the railway, local communities are involved, informed, and treated with the respect they deserve. Construction of a project on the scale of HS2 will inevitably affect many people, including residents of Aylesbury, but a wide range of controls are in place, including a comprehensive Code of Construction Practice, and independent Commissioners, to minimise disruption as far as possible and to respond to any concerns raised. In recognition of those impacts that remain, however, local people may be interested in applying to the HS2 Community and Environment Fund, which provides grant funding for beneficial projects along the line of the route, and to mitigate the impact of HS2 works.