Department for Transport

Gateshead Council and Newcastle City Council, as local highway authorities, are responsible for the condition and maintenance of Redheugh Bridge through the Newcastle and Gateshead’s Joint Bridges Committee". Both Councils are members of the North-East Combined Authority (NECA).

The Department does not hold a central contingency fund to pay for repairs of this sort but is always willing to discuss with individual highway authorities what support might be available. At Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced an extra £500 million for local highway maintenance for the 2025/26 financial year, which will allow authorities to undertake more repairs of this sort. As part of the funding uplift, NECA will receive an additional £21.7 million, on top of its existing City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement. It is a matter for the Mayor to determine how to allocate this funding to NECA’s constituent authorities to allow them to maintain their highway networks, including bridges and other assets.

This service was withdrawn in December 2022 in the timetable developed by the Manchester Task Force, a cross-industry group comprising of Transport for the North, train operators and Network Rail, to deliver more reliable services through Manchester.

The task force identified the Sheffield-Manchester Airport service, which reverses at Manchester Piccadilly, consuming two train paths in each direction, as one of the worst performing, with a significant impact on delays across the network.

The new timetable has delivered improvements in reliability of around 30 per cent, and the task force concept is now being used to resolve issues on the East Coast main line. As new infrastructure is realised and longer trains allow for a greater capacity with less congestion, we will look at services that could be reintroduced, possibly including direct services from Sheffield to the Airport, though there could be other towns and cities making a case for their pre-2022 direct connections to be restored as well.

Statistics on reported road injury collisions in Great Britain are published based on data reported by police via the data collection known as STATS19.

Within STATS19, reporting police officers can assign up to 6 factors which they believe may have contributed to the collision, including ‘poor or defective road surface’. Contributory factors are assigned based on the opinions of the reporting officer at the scene or within a short time of the collision, rather than a detailed investigation.

The number of collisions in each of the last 10 years with the factor ‘poor or defective road surface’ assigned is published in table RAS0701 on gov.uk and reproduced below:

All operators are required to meet their contractual obligations as set out in their National Rail Contract, including contractual performance indicators. Failure to comply with those contractual obligations, once Force Majeure claims have been taken into account, leaves operators open to enforcement action.

The Department is currently assessing if XC Trains Limited exceeded the default threshold, for any of the relevant indicators in these periods, once Force Majeure claims have been taken into account.

The current Remedial Agreement with XC Trains Limited that was agreed in August 2024 runs until March 2025. There has been no amendment to the existing Remedial Agreement.

South Western Railway Sunday services between Yeovil and London Waterloo have been challenging. Over the past 13 rail periods, 79.04% of services have departed within three minutes of their advertised departure time, with 96.73% departing within fifteen minutes. I am meeting South Western Railway on performance issues, as is being done with all Operators, later this month.

Future rail infrastructure investment will be considered as part of the current Spending Review, which will be concluded in June 2025.

DfT analysis shows that we can achieve aviation net zero 2050 under a range of assumptions about future technology development, without the government needing to intervene directly to limit airport expansion. This analysis is set out in the technical annex of the Jet Zero Strategy, which is published on gov.uk.

The Rail Delivery Group administer the back-office systems that allow third-party retailers to sell railcards. They maintain regular dialogue with retailers, including how retailers might be able to expand their offer of products such as disabled person's railcards.

This government has set out its ambition to simplify fares, ticketing and passenger compensation systems to drive innovation across the network and improve the passenger experience. We will share further details of progress in due course.

The Persons with Reduced Mobility National Technical Specification Notice (PRM-NTSN) sets out the dimensions, weights, and capabilities of wheelchairs so that users can travel across the rail network. No assessment has been made to bring tricycles into scope of the PRM-NTSN, however the Government continues working towards a more accessible railway including under future public ownership.

The Disabled Persons Rail Card (DPRC) supports over 300,000 with disabilities to travel more affordably, recognising that people with a disability often face additional costs and barriers to participating in day-to-day activities such as travel. Although those with a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability can be eligible for a DPRC already, under some circumstances, the Department for Transport is currently reviewing the criteria to ensure they reflect a more comprehensive understanding of disability, particularly in relation to non-visible disabilities, and how people demonstrate their eligibility.

Department officials are in regular conversation with South Western Railway regarding their service provision in response to demand. When reviewing train services, the Department needs to assess business cases and balance demand with value for the taxpayer in its considerations.

The British Transport Police’s (BTP) budget is set by the British Transport Police Authority (BTPA). It is the executive non-departmental public body that oversees the Force and is their employer. BTPA sets the BTP’s budget annually following proposals from the Force and views from industry. Set against a backdrop of wider public sector efficiencies and affordability by the rail industry it has agreed a budget increase for the financial year 2025/26 of 5.9%.

The cost of policing the rail network in Great Britain is primarily covered through the funding agreements that the British Transport Police Authority holds with Network Rail, the rail operators and Transport for London.

BTP are dedicated to building a modern, inclusive, and resilient force that reflects the communities it serves, and that keeps the railway safe and secure for passengers and rail staff. Their latest headcount figures show the Force is successful at maintaining staff and officer numbers at a consistent level.

The Department requires all train operators, including Southeastern, to plan services and timetables designed to meet passenger demand while also ensuring value for money for the taxpayer. Timetables are kept under review and, where appropriate, adjusted to reflect fluctuations in demand.

In December 2024, Southeastern encountered an incident that resulted in damage to one of its highspeed units and as a result it is temporarily operating some of its high speed services between Folkestone and London with fewer carriages. However, Southeastern is continuously monitoring passenger feedback and loading data to ensure it optimises the allocation of carriages to meet demand.

The sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) Mandate – which came into effect at the start of this year - is the UK’s key policy to decarbonise jet fuel. It obligates the supply of an increasing amount of SAF in the overall UK aviation fuel mix; starting at 2% in 2025, reaching 15% in 2035 and 22% in 2040. Targets beyond 2040 will remain at the same level (22%) but will be kept under review – and can be increased as the market develops.

The UK is already making significant progress in the supply of SAF. 97 million litres of SAF were supplied in 2023, equivalent to 77 kilotonnes or 0.7% of all jet fuel supplied in the UK that year, and double the amount in the previous year. In 2023, 99.6% (96.3 million litres) of SAF was from used cooking oil and 0.4% (0.3 million litres) was from food waste.

The sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) Mandate – which came into effect at the start of this year - is the UK’s key policy to decarbonise jet fuel. It obligates the supply of an increasing amount of SAF in the overall UK aviation fuel mix; starting at 2% in 2025, reaching 15% in 2035 and 22% in 2040. Targets beyond 2040 will remain at the same level (22%) but will be kept under review – and can be increased as the market develops.

The UK is already making significant progress in the supply of SAF. 97 million litres of SAF were supplied in 2023, equivalent to 77 kilotonnes or 0.7% of all jet fuel supplied in the UK that year, and double the amount in the previous year. In 2023, 99.6% (96.3 million litres) of SAF was from used cooking oil and 0.4% (0.3 million litres) was from food waste.

Under the National Rail Conditions of Travel which set out the contract which applies when a passenger buys a ticket to travel on the National Rail Network, train companies are required to offer to refund passengers by the same payment method with which the ticket was originally purchased.

All operators are required to meet their contractual obligations as set out in their National Rail Contract. Failure to comply with those contractual obligations leaves operators open to enforcement action.

It is public knowledge that CrossCountry is both reinstating services on some routes and amending the times of some services from May 2025. The Department has not agreed any alterations to the CrossCountry May 2025 timetable.

The current Remedial Agreement with XC Trains Limited that was agreed in August 2024 runs until March 2025. The Department is considering what further actions might be appropriate, if any.

The Remedial Agreement letter has been published on the .gov website. Redactions have been made using the exemptions permitted under both section 40(2) (personal information) and 43(2) (commercially prejudicial information) of the Freedom of Information Act. A public interest test was conducted as part of the consideration process. The Remedial Agreement runs until March 2025.

The English Devolution Accountability Framework and Scrutiny Protocol set out the accountability requirements for all Combined Authorities. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s English Devolution White Paper set out the government’s commitment to work with the sector to explore a number of measures to enhance local scrutiny and accountability.

Where a Mayoral Combined Authority is in receipt of an integrated funding settlement, this will be underpinned by the Memorandum of Understanding, available at Integrated Settlements for Mayoral Combined Authorities - GOV.UK, and an individual outcomes framework for delivery, to be agreed with government.

For the transport measures that require implementation guidance, this is being developed and will be published in due course. Devolved leaders in Mayoral Combined Authorities will have a statutory role in governing, managing, planning and developing the Great British Railways (GBR) network. GBR will be organised to work collaboratively with mayors and local stakeholders, ensuring rail better meets local needs. Supporting this, GBR will agree partnerships with mayors, demonstrating a change in how the railway engages locally.

Local influence and control will need to be balanced with Great British Railways (GBR) taking decisions in the interest of the wider regional and national network in line with the Long-Term Rail Strategy that will be put in place. Further detail is outlined in an 8-week public consultation into the Government’s proposals for the Railways Bill, published on 18^th February. This consultation seeks views on the key legislative proposals that will form part of the upcoming Railways Bill and make that vision a reality.

The English Devolution Accountability Framework and Scrutiny Protocol set out the accountability requirements for all Combined Authorities. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s English Devolution White Paper set out the government’s commitment to work with the sector to explore a number of measures to enhance local scrutiny and accountability.

Where a Mayoral Combined Authority is in receipt of an integrated funding settlement, this will be underpinned by the Memorandum of Understanding, available at Integrated Settlements for Mayoral Combined Authorities - GOV.UK, and an individual outcomes framework for delivery, to be agreed with government.

For the transport measures that require implementation guidance, this is being developed and will be published in due course. Devolved leaders in Mayoral Combined Authorities will have a statutory role in governing, managing, planning and developing the Great British Railways (GBR) network. GBR will be organised to work collaboratively with mayors and local stakeholders, ensuring rail better meets local needs. Supporting this, GBR will agree partnerships with mayors, demonstrating a change in how the railway engages locally.

Local influence and control will need to be balanced with Great British Railways (GBR) taking decisions in the interest of the wider regional and national network in line with the Long-Term Rail Strategy that will be put in place.

On 18^th February we launched the 8-week public consultation into the Government’s proposals for the Railways Bill. This consultation seeks views on the key legislative proposals that will form part of the upcoming Railways Bill and make that vision a reality.

HS2 Ltd and the Department for Transport do not recognise the reports of alleged ‘foul play’ in the letting of these contracts. HS2 Ltd acted as agent on behalf of Network Rail and DfT in procuring the Master Development Partner for the Euston Over-site Development. I have been assured that HS2 Ltd had in place rigorous procurement processes, which were aligned to all necessary legislation and best practice on public procurement, including in respect of the identification and management of conflicts of interest. The contracting approach and contract award were further scrutinised and approved by the department. Given this, the Department has no cause to further investigate or void the contract.

The Department for Transport allocates capital funding to local highways authorities to enable them to maintain and improve their respective networks, based on their local knowledge, circumstances, and priorities. The funding is paid out as a grant under section 31 of the Local Government Act 2003, and is unringfenced. It is up to each authority to decide how best to spend it to fulfil its statutory duty under section 41 of the Highways Act 1980.

Revenue funding for highway maintenance is provided to local authorities each year by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement. This funding is also unringfenced.

The Department publishes maintenance expenditure on local roads on gov.uk each year based on local authority outturn receipts. These show that capital expenditure on the local highway network is consistently higher than the funding provided by the Department for highway maintenance activities, which suggests that generally local authorities are not using the capital funding provided by the Department for other purposes.

The Department intends to introduce new reporting requirements on local highway authorities for the 2025/26 financial year, which will require them to provide further information to ensure residents can see how they intend to use the funding provided by the Government.

The Department’s officials meet regularly with local authority representatives and other experts in the road maintenance industry to discuss best practice. Ministers have also met with key stakeholder groups, including the Pothole Partnership which comprises organisations representing road users and industry.

The Department agrees that local highway authorities should focus on preventative rather than reactive maintenance activities, and this advice is set out in the Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure, which is available online. The Department is committed to updating this guidance and has begun work to scope out urgently which parts need updating and how. The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes, and encourages authorities to consider all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes or resurfacing of roads.

Decisions on how much to spend on their local highway networks each year are matters for local highway authorities, who have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the public highway network in their area. The Department for Transport collects and publishes on gov.uk each year data on authorities’ capital and revenue expenditure on their highway maintenance activities. The data shows that, at a national level, total spending on local road maintenance in the financial year 2022/23 was broadly similar to total spend in each of the previous five years.

This Government recognises the importance of well-maintained roads and has provided an additional £500m for highway maintenance for the year 2025/26 – a near 50% uplift on the current baseline. This has resulted in an 36% increase on average to individual local highway authority allocations, as well as providing highway maintenance funding top-ups to London authorities and mayoral areas already receiving City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements. These allocations can be found on gov.uk.

In addition, the Department is taking a number of steps to improve its understanding of the condition of local roads. It worked with the British Standards Institute and the highway sector to develop a new road condition data standard for local highway authorities, which was published last year. This will enable them to utilise new technologies, including AI, to identify potholes and other defects in their highway network more promptly.

The Department’s officials meet regularly with local authority representatives and other experts in the road maintenance industry to discuss best practice. Ministers have also met with key stakeholder groups, including the Pothole Partnership which comprises organisations representing road users and industry.

The Department agrees that local highway authorities should focus on preventative rather than reactive maintenance activities, and this advice is set out in the Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure, which is available online. The Department is committed to updating this guidance and has begun work to scope out urgently which parts need updating and how. The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes, and encourages authorities to consider all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes or resurfacing of roads.

Decisions on how much to spend on their local highway networks each year are matters for local highway authorities, who have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the public highway network in their area. The Department for Transport collects and publishes on gov.uk each year data on authorities’ capital and revenue expenditure on their highway maintenance activities. The data shows that, at a national level, total spending on local road maintenance in the financial year 2022/23 was broadly similar to total spend in each of the previous five years.

This Government recognises the importance of well-maintained roads and has provided an additional £500m for highway maintenance for the year 2025/26 – a near 50% uplift on the current baseline. This has resulted in an 36% increase on average to individual local highway authority allocations, as well as providing highway maintenance funding top-ups to London authorities and mayoral areas already receiving City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements. These allocations can be found on gov.uk.

In addition, the Department is taking a number of steps to improve its understanding of the condition of local roads. It worked with the British Standards Institute and the highway sector to develop a new road condition data standard for local highway authorities, which was published last year. This will enable them to utilise new technologies, including AI, to identify potholes and other defects in their highway network more promptly.

The Department’s officials meet regularly with local authority representatives and other experts in the road maintenance industry to discuss best practice. Ministers have also met with key stakeholder groups, including the Pothole Partnership which comprises organisations representing road users and industry.

The Department agrees that local highway authorities should focus on preventative rather than reactive maintenance activities, and this advice is set out in the Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure, which is available online. The Department is committed to updating this guidance and has begun work to scope out urgently which parts need updating and how. The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes, and encourages authorities to consider all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes or resurfacing of roads.

Decisions on how much to spend on their local highway networks each year are matters for local highway authorities, who have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the public highway network in their area. The Department for Transport collects and publishes on gov.uk each year data on authorities’ capital and revenue expenditure on their highway maintenance activities. The data shows that, at a national level, total spending on local road maintenance in the financial year 2022/23 was broadly similar to total spend in each of the previous five years.

This Government recognises the importance of well-maintained roads and has provided an additional £500m for highway maintenance for the year 2025/26 – a near 50% uplift on the current baseline. This has resulted in an 36% increase on average to individual local highway authority allocations, as well as providing highway maintenance funding top-ups to London authorities and mayoral areas already receiving City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements. These allocations can be found on gov.uk.

In addition, the Department is taking a number of steps to improve its understanding of the condition of local roads. It worked with the British Standards Institute and the highway sector to develop a new road condition data standard for local highway authorities, which was published last year. This will enable them to utilise new technologies, including AI, to identify potholes and other defects in their highway network more promptly.

The Department’s officials meet regularly with local authority representatives and other experts in the road maintenance industry to discuss best practice. Ministers have also met with key stakeholder groups, including the Pothole Partnership which comprises organisations representing road users and industry.

The Department agrees that local highway authorities should focus on preventative rather than reactive maintenance activities, and this advice is set out in the Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure, which is available online. The Department is committed to updating this guidance and has begun work to scope out urgently which parts need updating and how. The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes, and encourages authorities to consider all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns, and not just the fixing of potholes or resurfacing of roads.

Decisions on how much to spend on their local highway networks each year are matters for local highway authorities, who have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the public highway network in their area. The Department for Transport collects and publishes on gov.uk each year data on authorities’ capital and revenue expenditure on their highway maintenance activities. The data shows that, at a national level, total spending on local road maintenance in the financial year 2022/23 was broadly similar to total spend in each of the previous five years.

This Government recognises the importance of well-maintained roads and has provided an additional £500m for highway maintenance for the year 2025/26 – a near 50% uplift on the current baseline. This has resulted in an 36% increase on average to individual local highway authority allocations, as well as providing highway maintenance funding top-ups to London authorities and mayoral areas already receiving City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements. These allocations can be found on gov.uk.

In addition, the Department is taking a number of steps to improve its understanding of the condition of local roads. It worked with the British Standards Institute and the highway sector to develop a new road condition data standard for local highway authorities, which was published last year. This will enable them to utilise new technologies, including AI, to identify potholes and other defects in their highway network more promptly.

The Department announced in December that South Western Railway’s services will be the first to transfer into public ownership in May 2025, followed by c2c’s services in July 2025 and Greater Anglia’s in the autumn. The Department will issue an expiry notice to Greater Anglia in due course to confirm the exact transfer date.

Ministers will take decisions on further transfers in due course, taking account of relevant circumstances prevailing at the time. The Department expects the transfer of all rail passenger services currently operated by private sector train operators under contract with the Department to complete over the next 3 years.

Ministers and officials have regular conversations with Transport for London (TfL) on a variety of issues. However transport in London is devolved to the Mayor, and TfL is responsible for maintaining operations and ensuring health and safety is considered on its network.

We want to expand ticketing innovations such as PayAsYouGo (PAYG) where possible. We will be considering a number of factors to determine stations which could be included in the future phases of PAYG with contactless rollout.

Investment in active travel schemes makes it easier for people to walk, wheel or cycle, and thereby plays a significant role in improving people’s physical and mental health. Ministers from this Department have met regularly with their counterparts in the Department of Health and Social Care to discuss this as well as the other ways that the Department can contribute to the Government’s health mission. On 12 February, Active Travel England announced almost £300 million of funding for new walking, wheeling and cycling schemes. The health benefits of these will lead to 43,000 fewer sick days per year, easing pressure on the NHS.

Transport is a devolved matter, and the Department for Transport is responsible for transport in England only. Bus services in England are predominantly run on a commercial basis by private operators. Ultimate responsibility for recruiting bus drivers falls to individual operators.

The government recognises the sector has had issues recruiting and retaining bus drivers in England, Scotland and Wales, but this is now more of a localised issue. The Department held a Driver Shortages Summit in 2022 with industry, and local and national government attendees to identify actions to help resolve this. In April 2024, the Department subsequently launched a consultation to help support driver recruitment on measures to amend licensing restrictions which would enable 18- to 20-year-olds to drive a bus and coach over 50km when driving a regular service and enable some of the tests required to be passed in order to gain a driver certificate of professional competence to be taken before a provisional licence is issued. The Department is reviewing responses to the consultation and will publish a response in due course.

The Department is not intending to undertake any assessments of Phase 5 of the South-West Rail Resilience Programme whilst the Spending Review is ongoing.

All capital funding within the Department for Transport is subject to internal review which is feeding into the Comprehensive Spending Review; the outcome of which will be known later this year.

Impacts and costs related to access to health services were not considered in the Outline Business Case for Phase 5 of the South West Rail Resilience Programme, prepared by Network Rail in early 2024.

The case for further assessment and delivery of Phase 5 of the South West Rail Resilience Programme will be considered as part of the current Spending Review.

it is for local authorities to make their own decisions about where to prioritise investment in local transport networks. Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIPs) aim to help authorities take a strategic approach to improving conditions for walking, wheeling and cycling. Revenue funding awarded by Active Travel England can be used by local authorities to support LCWIP development.

In addition, Active Travel England supports a range of programmes to help enable more active travel for schoolchildren, including Living Street’s Walk to School Outreach, Modeshift STARS and Bikeability cycle training. The Department has also recently published guidance for local authorities on implementing School Streets, which can encourage more active travel to schools.

Through the Active Travel Fund in the last five years, £646,775,713 has been awarded to local authorities across England, outside of London. Of this funding, £2,209,470 has been awarded to Leicestershire County Council. None of this funding was awarded to schemes in the Mid Leicestershire Constituency.

The Department also provides funding to Sustrans to upgrade and maintain the National Cycle Network (NCN) and has awarded £67,685,062 of NCN funding to Sustrans in the last five years. £1,902,970 of NCN funding has been awarded to routes in Leicestershire.

Funding for active travel in London, Scotland, Wales and North Ireland is devolved, as such the figures provided above are not inclusive of funding for active travel across the United Kingdom.

We have committed to expanding Pay As You Go (PAYG) contactless ticketing to further stations in the South East and recently announced that PAYG with contactless would be extended to a further 49 stations in 2025, including stations that are within the Dorking area; Dorking (Main), Box Hill and Westhumble, Reigate, and Leatherhead. Further details on any wider expansion of PAYG will be announced in due course.

We are committed to reforming the overcomplicated fares system with a view to simplifying it. While it is our ambition, through public ownership, to deliver a more affordable railway, any long-term changes or concessions made to rail fares policy require balancing against the potential impacts on passengers, taxpayers and the railway.

This year's 4.6 per cent increase will be the lowest absolute increase in three years and will support the Government's long-term plan to achieve financial sustainability of the railway.

We are working across the transport sector to ensure that women are represented within all levels of the transport system.

Specifically on leadership positions, we are supporters of the 'women in aviation and aerospace charter’, a commitment for organisations to support the progression of women into senior roles in the aviation and aerospace sectors by focusing on roles in the executive pipeline and the mid-tier level.

We also work closely with modal partners such as Women In Rail, Women in Bus and Coach and the Women In Maritime on programmes to support women in their careers.

There are no immediate plans to amend the regulations on electrically assisted pedal cycles (EAPCs). The previous administration consulted on potential changes to regulations, including increasing the maximum power of an EAPC from 250 to 500 Watts, but the Government has decided against this.

More broadly, the Government’s White Paper on English Devolution, published in December 2024, included proposals for greater powers for Local Transport Authorities to manage EAPC rental schemes and to tackle the scourge of badly parked cycles and e-cycles.

In addition, the Government will be bringing forward new legislation to enable the police to take vehicles, including EAPCs, off the road more quickly where they are being ridden in an anti-social manner, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before seizing them.

Finally, the Department published updated information for the public in December 2024 on the legal use of EAPCs, which is available on gov.uk. It is for the police to take enforcement action where these rules are not followed.

To improve working conditions for HGV drivers, the Department and industry are jointly investing up to £43.5 million to upgrade truckstops across England. This is on top of up to £26 million joint investment by National Highways and industry in lorry parking facilities along the strategic roads network. This funding is supporting operators across 30 counties in England to improve security, showers and refreshment facilities and increase lorry parking spaces.

In addition, the Department has been working with the insurance and road haulage trade associations to raise awareness of fleet insurance policies that can provide cover for newly qualified drivers without higher premiums.

To support drivers in returning to the sector, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has introduced more flexible Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) requirements for those driving in the UK. The requirement removes the need to complete 35 hours of training prior to a return to driving and replaces it with a 7-hour ‘return to driving’ training module, and a requirement to complete the 28 hours of other CPC training within 12 months.

The Department for Transport is also a strong supporter of the Generation Logistics campaign. Led by the industry, this initiative aims to raise awareness and enhance perceptions of careers in logistics, particularly among young people and underrepresented groups.

While DFT keeps in regular contact with our counterparts in Transport Scotland, Ports policy is devolved and any issues regarding Scottish ports and harbours would be for colleagues at Transport Scotland and the relevant Scottish minister to oversee.

DfT has not been made aware that there is a substantial issue around derelict small boats in Scottish harbours, either by Scottish authorities during our regular engagement or members of the public. The department would of course welcome a meeting with the relevant Scottish authorities if they felt there was a need to do so.