Written questions by Beavers.

What information her Department holds on the number of drink-driving related (a) deaths and (b) serious injuries in Blackpool North and Fleetwood for each of the past 5 years.

Statistics regarding drink driving in personal injury road collisions in Great Britain are based on data reported to police using the STATS19 system. The estimated number of fatalities and serious injuries in drink-drive collisions for Blackpool North and Fleetwood between 2019 and 2023 (the latest 5 years available) are given in the table below. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Values of 0 indicate that the estimated number of fatalities or serious injuries is less than 5:YearFatalitiesSerious injuries (adjusted)2023002022010202100202000201900 These figures are based on the results of breath tests conducted by the police at the scene of personal injury road collisions and combined with data from coroners on blood alcohol levels of those killed in collisions. On 7 January 2026 we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all. The Strategy sets an ambitious target to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on British roads by 65% by 2035. Alongside the strategy we published a consultation on reforms to motoring offences, including lowering the drink drive limit in England and Wales and introducing tougher penalties for driving without insurance or without a licence.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing mandatory fare meters in private hire vehicles.

Licensing authorities have the power to set maximum taxi fares for journeys within their area. Regulated fares provide an important element of customer protection in the rank and hail market where passengers do not have a choice over which vehicle they hire. A uniform set of tariffs enables taxi meters to be used to ensure taxi fares are accurately calculated. Licensing authorities have no power to set fares for private hire vehicles (PHVs). Fares for PHVs, which must be pre-booked with a licensed operator, are set by the PHV operator. The competitive pre-booked market allows PHV operators to compete on price as well as other factors such as quality of service. Apart from in London, meters can be fitted to PHVs and these would need to reflect the relevant PHV operator’s tariff. As different PHV operator tariffs may vary this could have the effect of restricting the range of operators which drivers could work with. Mandating the fitting of meters in PHVs would reduce the flexibility in the PHV sector and potentially affect the availability of vehicles for passengers and the way in which drivers can work to maximise their earnings.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that Uber accounts are not used by unlicensed taxi drivers.

Enforcement of the private hire vehicle licensing regime is a matter for licensing authorities and the police. Any licensed private hire vehicle operators found to be enabling the use of unlicensed drivers or vehicles to carry passengers may be prosecuted and risk revocation of their licence.

Whether her Department plans to strengthen regulations on out-of-area working of private hire Uber vehicles.

The Department is considering options to improve the current regulatory position in respect of taxis and private hire vehicles and will consult shortly on whether to make all local transport authorities, including Strategic Authorities, responsible for taxi and private hire vehicle licensing. We believe administering taxi and private hire vehicle licensing across a larger footprint would increase the consistency of standards and enable more effective use of enforcement powers across a whole functional economic area and facilitate integrated local transport planning. Greater economies of scale should also increase the efficiency in taxi and private hire vehicle licensing and the sector. This should reduce the factors that induce people to license out of their usual working area. This would be a significant change for the sector, and responses to the consultation will help inform the final decision.

What steps her Department is taking to increase the availability of practical driving tests in Blackpool North and Fleetwood constituency.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is to reduce car practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards. Measures in place to reduce waiting times for customers at all driving test centres (DTC), include the recruitment of new driving examiners (DE), conducting tests outside regular hours, including at weekends and on public holidays, and buying back annual leave from DEs. DVSA also continues to deploy DEs from areas with lower waiting times into those where waiting times are longer. Blackpool's current DTC is a temporary base. DVSA has identified a new location for Blackpool DTC and has been working through the planning process. If successful in opening a new DTC at this site, this should allow an increase in capacity in the number of DEs, with an overall capacity of 10 DEs. As part of recent recruitment at DTCs that serve the Blackpool North and Fleetwood constituency, DVSA has three potential new examiners currently in training.