Speeches by Greenwood.

“Yes.”

“There is flexibility within lane rental schemes about how they are operated. Generally, we have had good feedback from authorities on the five lane rental schemes that are operating. The local authorities think they are effective. The utilities are often avoiding having to pay the charges by doing things in a better wa…”

“Yes, I am sorry. I misunderstood.”

“If the question was whether highways authorities can apply, subject to Secretary of State approval, it is open to all highways authorities to apply to operate a lane rental scheme.”

“We are looking at the proposals in those applications that have already been made. We have issued guidance to highways authorities to help them develop their bids. The whole purpose of lane rental is for it to be targeted on the most congested roads at the most congested times. The point is to incentivise those carryin…”

“We are getting feedback from those authorities that are operating it and seeing what the impacts are. Some of the existing evaluations indicate that the behaviour of utility companies and highways authorities is changing. Both are part of these lane rental schemes. They are for highways authorities doing their own road…”

“It was directed to you.”

“We need to make sure it continues to work. Utility companies can pass on lane rental charges to customer bills. We want to make sure that it incentivises them to avoid charges. We do not want to put up the prices of everybody’s utility bills by doing this. We want them to change their behaviours in the way they carry o…”

“One thing that we are doing in relation to EV charging is the proposal to allow EV charge point operators to access the permit system in order to carry out street works. That is advantageous in the sense that those works, as far as possible, can be co-ordinated alongside other works that are happening on carriageways a…”

“That is okay. On cross-pavement charging solutions, we want everyone to have the opportunity to make the switch to an EV. It is much easier for those people who have off-street parking than it is for those who do not. Cross‑pavement solutions provide a great opportunity because they enable people to use domestic electr…”

“We want it to be easy and safe.”

“There are some really big issues around it. There are issues around the siting of EV charge points full stop because anything that adds to what is on the pavement can, as we know, make it more difficult for disabled people to get out. There are issues around the accessibility of public charge points. There is a standar…”

“Yes, especially if there is less incentive to build a long-term relationship between the highways authority’s street works team and the utility companies they are dealing with. If I think about what has been described, you can imagine that happening once, but you would hope that was not going to happen repeatedly. You …”

“There have not traditionally been escalating fines, but we could consider that for offences or repeat offenders. As I say, the focus is on incentivising and improving behaviour, but, absolutely, if that is what we need in order to focus minds, that is something that we would be willing to look at.”

“There has been an increase in the number of immediate urgent repairs. Inevitably, one can understand this suggestion that there is abuse of the system, but we have not been able to verify whether there is abuse. When the DfT has spoken to companies, they are not admitting that there is a tendency to do that.”

“I am delighted to recognise that fantastic work. Giving children the opportunity to walk, wheel or cycle to school is fundamental to their development and, as many people have said, builds good habits from an early age. When a quarter of children leaving primary school are overweight and 40% of primary school children …”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship this afternoon, Mrs Hobhouse. I congratulate the hon. Member for Didcot and Wantage (Olly Glover) on securing this debate and on his compelling arguments for more active travel and for improving road safety. We heard from 23 hon. Members—probably more, if we include the…”

“My hon. Friend highlights the fantastic work that many local authorities are doing, and I welcome the evidence that she shared. Since Active Travel England was created, we have seen a fivefold improvement in schemes meeting minimum quality standards, ensuring that what is being built is of a higher quality, enhancing s…”

“I will not, because I am very conscious of the time. If we want to encourage modal shift and improve health through transport, we absolutely must improve safety on the roads. People will only change their travel behaviour if they feel that it is safe for them and their families. As has been mentioned repeatedly, too ma…”

“My hon. Friend makes an important point, and people can see for themselves which party is on the side of motorists and road users. We have provided an extra £500 million in the current financial year, on top of the previous Government’s funding baseline and the Network North money for 2024-25. It is a huge increase. Fo…”