Written questions by Arthur.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the road safety strategy on deaths and serious injuries from cycling and walking.

The Road Safety Strategy sets an ambitious target to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on British roads by 65% by 2035. This target will focus the efforts of road safety partners across Britain, with measures to protect vulnerable road users, update vehicle safety technologies and review motoring offences. One of the Safety Performance Indicators which will be monitored alongside delivery of the Strategy is: the rate of cyclists/pedestrians killed or seriously injured on England’s roads, measured as the number of fatalities and serious injuries per billion miles walked and cycled. Monitoring this should enable government to understand the impact that the Strategy is having on deaths and serious injuries of those cycling or walking. Our roads aren’t just for motorists; it is vitally important that everyone using our roads is kept safe. With that in mind on the 10 December 2025 we announced that we are allocating £626 million for local authorities from 2026-27 to 2029-30 to deliver walking, wheeling and cycling schemes.

What action her department is taking to support the use of digital twin technologies across the UK's transport system.

Since the publication in 2023 of Transport Research and Innovation Board’s Transport Digital Twin Vision and Roadmap to 2035, DfT has established a dedicated team to lead a digital twins programme, aligned with the Transport AI Action Plan (2025). This has already enabled the development of a diverse research programme, including the £46m TransiT research hub to decarbonise transport through digital twins; and a £5m programme to improve crisis response and resilience. These are providing the new tools and skills to ensure UK leadership in this key emerging technology. To enable business case development and improve adoption, in 2024 DfT published its Economic Benefits Analysis for Integrated Transport Digital Twins, quantifying the key benefits this technology can bring to the UK economy, estimated to £1.85bn over the next decade. Finally, DfT has directly supported industry innovation by funding innovative digital twin projects through the Transport Research Innovation Grants and the Freight Innovation Fund, to improve rail maintenance, traffic flow, urban resilience, better EV charging infrastructure and port operations.

What assessment she has made of the progress of the Transport Research and Innovation Board's 2023 Transport Digital Twin Vision and Roadmap to 2035.

The Transport Research and Innovation Board provides regular oversight on the progress against the Transport Digital Twin Vision and Roadmap to 2035, as part of regular operations for all its areas of activity. DfT has met all key government-owned milestones in digital twins, including working with the National Digital Twin Programme, enabling funding to research organisations, and providing a clear vision for the strategic case and benefits for digital twins in transport and adjacent sectors. A key milestone was to provide clear evidence and guidelines on the benefits of digital twins, and DfT has published its Economic Benefit Analysis (2024) showing that this emerging technology can enable better integration of traffic management and deliver £1.85bn of benefits to the UK over a decade. Additionally, DfT is working with the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre to develop guidance on data interoperability and integration across transport. The work is ongoing, and DfT committed in the recent Climate Adaptation Strategy for Transport (Dec 2025) to a long-term digital twin programme that aims to support network management, resilience planning and climate response.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of unlawful number plates on (a) the ability of the police to trace hit-and-run drivers and (b) efforts to reduce the proportion of untraced driver claims handled by the Motor Insurers' Bureau.

While those specific assessments have not been made, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is working with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and other government departments to improve the identification and enforcement of number plate crime. On-road enforcement of number plate and insurance offences is a matter for the police. The Government published its Road Safety Strategy on 7 January, setting out its vision for a safer future on our roads for all. As part of this, the Department for Transport is reviewing motoring offences and has published a consultation which seeks views on the introduction of penalty points and vehicle seizure for the offence of being in charge of a motor vehicle with an incorrect/altered/false number plate. The consultation can be found online at: www.gov.uk/government/consultations/proposed-changes-to-penalties-for-motoring-offences.

What her planned timetable is for taking legislative steps to develop a regulatory framework for low and zero emission vehicles, following the commitment in the Road Safety Strategy.

As stated in the Road Safety Strategy, the Government has made a commitment to pursue legislative reform for micromobility vehicles when parliamentary time allows.

If she will make an estimate of the potential impact of compensating victims of collisions involving illegal e-scooters and e-bikes on (a) the cost of motor insurance premiums for other motorists and (b) costs to the Motor Insurers' Bureau in the last 12 months.

We regularly engage with the Motor Insurer’s Bureau and are working with them to understand the impact of private e-scooters and illegal e-bikes on car drivers’ insurance premiums. It is clear the law on e-scooters needs to change, which is why the Government has committed to pursuing legislative reform for micromobility vehicles when parliamentary time allows. Any future regulations, including potential insurance requirements, will be publicly consulted on before they come into force.

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the data opportunities of connected and autonomous vehicles to reduce uninsured driving.

The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 sets out the regulations for insurance requirements of automated vehicles. The operator or owner of an automated vehicle must hold a policy of insurance that satisfies the conditions in section 145 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. The recent call for evidence, launched in December 2025, seeks views on various aspects of the automated vehicles regulatory framework, including insurance. Responses received will support future consultation on the proposed regulations, with full implementation of the Act anticipated by the second half of 2027.

Pursuant to the Answer of 17 December 2025 to Question 98632, how many visits the DVSA has made to retailers selling e-scooters; and how many incidences the DVSA have recorded of e-scooters being sold illegally or without proper guidance of legal restrictions.

The table below shows the number of retailers the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has checked from March 2022 to April 2025. 2022-2023932023-2024582024-202547 The table below shows many incidents DVSA has recorded of e-scooters being sold illegally or without proper guidance of legal restrictions, for the same time period. 2022-2023792023-2024412024-202542 Please note, high level of non-compliance found in 24-25 FY is due to poor levels of compliance being found in the on-line marketplace. In that year DVSA’s market surveillance unit (MSU) looked into higher proportions sold in on-line markets due to apparent shifts in the way such items are sold.

What interactions the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has had with food delivery companies in reference to vehicles used by delivery drivers.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) recognises that last-mile delivery, including food delivery services, presents specific safety and compliance challenges. To address these challenges, DVSA has engaged with representatives from the sector and continues to collaborate on the development of guidance and best practice, including hosting a last mile delivery summit. Operational enforcement activity is also undertaken where appropriate, particularly in relation to light commercial vehicles used within this segment. In addition, DVSA does support police investigations – for example, by conducting technical assessments of modified “last-mile” fast-food delivery bicycle fitted with electric motors.

How many registered a) petrol vehicles, b) diesel vehicles, c) electric vehicles, d) hybrid vehicles and e) classic vehicles were there in Edinburgh South West constituency in the last 5 years and the last 10 years.

We do not readily hold new vehicle registration figures at the requested geographic level. Information on licensed vehicles broken down by Upper and lower tier local authorities and lower super output areas (LSOA) are available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/vehicle-licensing-statistics-data-tables

If she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the APPG for Cycling and Walking's report entitled Unregulated and Unsafe: The Threat of Illegal E-Bikes.

The Government recognises the concerns raised in the APPG report about the safety of e-bikes which do not comply with regulations and the risks associated with battery fires. The Product Regulation and Metrology Act which received Royal Assent in July, created the powers to allow Government to change regulations to respond to emerging technologies, including e-bikes, batteries and conversion kits.The Government treats road safety seriously and is committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads. The Road Safety Strategy is under development and will include a broad range of policies.

What assessment she has made of whether a disproportionate burden is placed on local authorities and National Highways to identify and reunite cats injured or killed on the road, in the absence of a statutory duty for drivers to report such collisions.

There are no plans to amend section 170 of the Road Traffic Act to make it mandatory for drivers to report road collisions involving cats. Although there is no obligation to report all animal deaths on roads, drivers should, if possible, make enquiries to ascertain the owner of domestic animals, such as cats, and advise them of the situation. Since June 2024, all cats in England over 20 weeks of age must be microchipped and registered on a compliant database, unless exempt or free-living. This will make it easier for National Highways and local authorities to reunite cats with their keeper.

Whether her Department has considered the potential impact of amending the Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 to introduce a statutory minimum uptime for all publicly accessible charge points, including slow on-street and residential chargers.

Since November 2024, the Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 have required operators to achieve an average reliability of 99% across their network of rapid chargepoints of 50 kW and above. We continue to monitor the public charging network, the impact of the regulations, and whether further steps may be required.

How many individuals had their status as Approved Driving Instructors removed by DVSA due to (a) being involved in reselling driving tests and/or (b) sharing there official driving test-booking login details with third parties in (i) 2022, (ii) 2023, (iii) 2024 and (iv) 2025.

To ensure fairness for everyone wanting to book a practical driving test, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) continues to work hard to combat the unscrupulous practice of reselling tests across the country.While the majority of driving instructors who use DVSA’s booking services do so as intended, DVSA takes action to prevent learner drivers from exploitation and limit opportunities for misuse of the online booking services. DVSA have a zero tolerance for those who exploit learner drivers. In addition, DVSA will investigate any breaches reported to them. Since the pandemic DVSA has been aware of third-party websites selling driving test appointments at inflated prices and does not approve use of such applications. In January 2023, DVSA changed the terms and conditions for using the booking service to help prevent anyone from selling tests at profit.On 6 January 2025, DVSA introduced new terms and conditions for use of the service driving instructors and trainers use to book and manage practical driving tests for their pupils. Since the introduction of the revised terms and conditions, DVSA has removed access for 346 businesses and driving instructors for misuse of the booking service.The new terms and conditions make it clear that driving instructors and businesses must not book driving tests on behalf of learner drivers they are not teaching. They also stop driving instructors and businesses from using a learner driver’s details to book a driving test that they have no intention of that particular learner driver using.DVSA does not hold any information about ADIs sharing their official test booking login details and DVSA has not removed any approved driving instructors (ADI) from the ADI Register due to being involved in the reselling of practical driving tests. However, as stated above, where misuses of the booking service have been detected, individuals have had their access removed, to prevent the selling of tests. DVSA has also deployed bot protection to help stop automated systems from buying up tests unfairly and will continue to remove the accounts of those who are proven to have broken the rules.

What assessment she has made of the extent to which Approved Driving Instructors are sharing their official driving test-booking login details with third parties in order to profit from the resale of tests.

To ensure fairness for everyone wanting to book a practical driving test, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) continues to work hard to combat the unscrupulous practice of reselling tests across the country.While the majority of driving instructors who use DVSA’s booking services do so as intended, DVSA takes action to prevent learner drivers from exploitation and limit opportunities for misuse of the online booking services. DVSA have a zero tolerance for those who exploit learner drivers. In addition, DVSA will investigate any breaches reported to them. Since the pandemic DVSA has been aware of third-party websites selling driving test appointments at inflated prices and does not approve use of such applications. In January 2023, DVSA changed the terms and conditions for using the booking service to help prevent anyone from selling tests at profit.On 6 January 2025, DVSA introduced new terms and conditions for use of the service driving instructors and trainers use to book and manage practical driving tests for their pupils. Since the introduction of the revised terms and conditions, DVSA has removed access for 346 businesses and driving instructors for misuse of the booking service.The new terms and conditions make it clear that driving instructors and businesses must not book driving tests on behalf of learner drivers they are not teaching. They also stop driving instructors and businesses from using a learner driver’s details to book a driving test that they have no intention of that particular learner driver using.DVSA does not hold any information about ADIs sharing their official test booking login details and DVSA has not removed any approved driving instructors (ADI) from the ADI Register due to being involved in the reselling of practical driving tests. However, as stated above, where misuses of the booking service have been detected, individuals have had their access removed, to prevent the selling of tests. DVSA has also deployed bot protection to help stop automated systems from buying up tests unfairly and will continue to remove the accounts of those who are proven to have broken the rules.

When the Chief Executive of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency was made aware that Approved Driving Instructors were involved in reselling driving tests; and what steps she took to address the issue.

To ensure fairness for everyone wanting to book a practical driving test, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) continues to work hard to combat the unscrupulous practice of reselling tests across the country.While the majority of driving instructors who use DVSA’s booking services do so as intended, DVSA takes action to prevent learner drivers from exploitation and limit opportunities for misuse of the online booking services. DVSA have a zero tolerance for those who exploit learner drivers. In addition, DVSA will investigate any breaches reported to them. Since the pandemic DVSA has been aware of third-party websites selling driving test appointments at inflated prices and does not approve use of such applications. In January 2023, DVSA changed the terms and conditions for using the booking service to help prevent anyone from selling tests at profit.On 6 January 2025, DVSA introduced new terms and conditions for use of the service driving instructors and trainers use to book and manage practical driving tests for their pupils. Since the introduction of the revised terms and conditions, DVSA has removed access for 346 businesses and driving instructors for misuse of the booking service.The new terms and conditions make it clear that driving instructors and businesses must not book driving tests on behalf of learner drivers they are not teaching. They also stop driving instructors and businesses from using a learner driver’s details to book a driving test that they have no intention of that particular learner driver using.DVSA does not hold any information about ADIs sharing their official test booking login details and DVSA has not removed any approved driving instructors (ADI) from the ADI Register due to being involved in the reselling of practical driving tests. However, as stated above, where misuses of the booking service have been detected, individuals have had their access removed, to prevent the selling of tests. DVSA has also deployed bot protection to help stop automated systems from buying up tests unfairly and will continue to remove the accounts of those who are proven to have broken the rules.

What assessment she has made of the extent to which Approved Driving Instructors are involved in reselling driving tests.

To ensure fairness for everyone wanting to book a practical driving test, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) continues to work hard to combat the unscrupulous practice of reselling tests across the country.While the majority of driving instructors who use DVSA’s booking services do so as intended, DVSA takes action to prevent learner drivers from exploitation and limit opportunities for misuse of the online booking services. DVSA have a zero tolerance for those who exploit learner drivers. In addition, DVSA will investigate any breaches reported to them. Since the pandemic DVSA has been aware of third-party websites selling driving test appointments at inflated prices and does not approve use of such applications. In January 2023, DVSA changed the terms and conditions for using the booking service to help prevent anyone from selling tests at profit.On 6 January 2025, DVSA introduced new terms and conditions for use of the service driving instructors and trainers use to book and manage practical driving tests for their pupils. Since the introduction of the revised terms and conditions, DVSA has removed access for 346 businesses and driving instructors for misuse of the booking service.The new terms and conditions make it clear that driving instructors and businesses must not book driving tests on behalf of learner drivers they are not teaching. They also stop driving instructors and businesses from using a learner driver’s details to book a driving test that they have no intention of that particular learner driver using.DVSA does not hold any information about ADIs sharing their official test booking login details and DVSA has not removed any approved driving instructors (ADI) from the ADI Register due to being involved in the reselling of practical driving tests. However, as stated above, where misuses of the booking service have been detected, individuals have had their access removed, to prevent the selling of tests. DVSA has also deployed bot protection to help stop automated systems from buying up tests unfairly and will continue to remove the accounts of those who are proven to have broken the rules.

Whether the review of the Airports National Policy Statement will include steps to increase access to careers (a) as pilots (b) in aviation generally.

A review of the Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS) was launched on 22 October. It provides the primary basis for decision making on development consent applications for a third runway at Heathrow Airport. The current ANPS sets out that any promoter should aim to maximise the employment and skills opportunities expansion brings, including apprenticeships, however it is site specific to Heathrow. This will be considered as part of the review.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing standardised eligibility for the Blue Badge scheme across local authorities.

The standardised eligibility criteria for the Blue Badge scheme are published on GOV.UK. Local authorities are responsible for determining and implementing the administrative, assessment, and enforcement procedures which they believe are in accordance with the governing legislation. The Blue Badge scheme is devolved in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland; each Devolved Administration is responsible for the scheme within their respective areas.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of ship emissions at berth on disadvantaged communities living near ports; and what steps she is taking to help mitigate that impact.

In March, the Government published its Maritime Decarbonisation Strategy that will reduce the impact of shipping emissions at berth for disadvantaged communities living near ports. This includes expanding the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS) to domestic maritime from July next year, putting a price on shipping emissions and incentivising the sector to decarbonise. The UK ETS expansion will include emissions from UK domestic voyages and all in-port emissions for vessels over 5000 Gross Tonnage (GT) at berth. The Maritime Decarbonisation Strategy also including a commitment to consider an at berth emissions requirement and we published the Net Zero Ports Call for Evidence to help inform that work. We are considering the responses to the Call for Evidence and what more may be needed to reduce emissions at berth. Alongside these domestic measures, the Government is also acting internationally to tackle shipping emissions. We are supporting the designation of the North-East Atlantic Emission Control Area at the International Maritime Organization. In combination with the existing North Sea Emission Control Area, this would ensure all UK waters are equally protected by strict limits on sulphur and nitrogen dioxides. Analysis supported by the Government indicates this will cut sulphur oxide emissions by up to 82% and fine particulate matter by around 67%, significantly improving air quality along the UK coastline and reducing health risks for coastal communities.