Shivani Raja MP: written questions
312 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Visas: StandardsHome OfficeTabled 29 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 14003More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of long term visa applications subject to a minimum service standard were decided within the relevant service standard by visa category since 1 January 2025.
Answer: Visa processing times are published on the UKVI website at Visa decision waiting times: applications outside the UK - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) and Visa decision waiting times: applications inside the UK - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). UKVI are currently processing appl...
Answered 2 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordElectric Vehicles: Excise DutiesTreasuryTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13602More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2026 to Question 7617 on Electric Vehicles: Excise Duties, when the Government expects to publish its response to the Consultation on the Introduction of Electric Vehicle Excise Dut
Answer: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given on 29th June to Question 11460
Answered 1 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordPlanning: Public ConsultationMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13601More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when she expects to publish the Government's response to the consultation on the proposed reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework and other changes to the planning syst
Answer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 387 on 18 May 2026.
Answered 20 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordNetwork Rail: AssetsDepartment for TransportTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13600More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 121192 on Network Rail: Assets, when Network Rail's next Delivery Plan update is expected to be published.
Answer: Network Rail expects to publish the Delivery Plan update document for 2026/27 in July 2026.
Answered 6 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordRailwaysDepartment for TransportTabled 26 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13599More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2026 to Question 4598 on Great British Railways, if she will list examples of current open access passenger rail services that her Department considers genuinely add value that
Answer: In the right circumstances, Open Access can provide benefits to rail passengers, such as improved connectivity and choice. However, Open Access can also increase costs to taxpayers and create additional performance pressures on an already constrained netw...
Answered 30 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordNational Highways: ExpenditureDepartment for TransportTabled 25 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 13259More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2026 to Question 5451 on National Highways: Expenditure, how much of the expenditure on National Highways' in-house external affairs function since 4 July 2024 was spent on (a)
Answer: For the period between 4 July and 31 May 2026, the National Highways in-house External Affairs Team's expenditure was as follows:(a) £1.6 million on salaries.(b) Zero spend on agency staff.(c) £280,921 on a technical professional services’ public affairs ...
Answered 30 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordRailways: FaresDepartment for TransportTabled 24 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12840More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much her Department and its arm's-length bodies have spent on (a) advertising, (b) marketing, (c) external public relations and (d) other communications activity on their announcement regarding regulated ra
Answer: Other than that reported in the answer on 13 March to Question 117710, the Department has not found any additional external expenditure on advertising, marketing, external public relations or other communications activity specifically in relation to the a...
Answered 30 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordLarge Goods Vehicles: Electric VehiclesDepartment for TransportTabled 24 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12839More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 June 2026 to Question 8651 on Large Goods Vehicles: Electric Vehicles, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of charging requirements on (a) daily vehicle
Answer: The Department will continue to engage with the sector on issues of utilisation and productivity, including through the detailed data that will be produced and shared as part of the Zero Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstrator (ZEHID) programme. We w...
Answered 30 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordSouth West Main Line: StandardsDepartment for TransportTabled 23 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12602More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what percentage of South Western Railway services arrived on time in (a) the final full year before transfer into public ownership and (b) the most recent year for which data is available.
Answer: At the end of May 2025, 84 per cent of South Western Railway (SWR) services arrived on time, or within three minutes of their scheduled arrival time. At the end of May 2026, the same metric showed 83.1 per cent. SWR inherited delays to the introduction of...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordRoad Traffic Offences: Fixed Penalties and ProsecutionsDepartment for TransportTabled 23 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12601More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many fixed penalty notices and prosecutions were issued for road traffic offences in England and Wales in each year since 2010, broken down by offence category.
Answer: The Department for Transport does not hold the information requested. Fixed penalty notices are a matter for the Home Office. The Home Office publishes statistics on fixed penalty notices and other outcomes for motoring offences as part of its Police powe...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordRoad Traffic Offences: Mobile PhonesDepartment for TransportTabled 23 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12600More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many drivers received six penalty points for using a hand-held mobile telephone while driving in each of the last five years.
Answer: The Department for Transport does not hold the information requested. Fixed penalty notices are a matter for the Home Office. The Home Office publishes statistics on fixed penalty notices and other outcomes for motoring offences as part of its Police powe...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordAviation: Alternative FuelsDepartment for TransportTabled 23 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12599More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 June 2026 to Question 9696 on the Low Carbon Fuels Fund, what estimate the Department has made of the amount of private sector investment that will be leveraged by the £219 million
Answer: We expect the £219m of capital funding available through the Low Carbon Fuels Fund to be invested directly into progressing projects through the early lifecycle stages towards a Final Investment Decision, by contributing to development costs, whilst maint...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordActive TravelDepartment for TransportTabled 23 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12387More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of active travel schemes funded since 2020 have had their Outline and Full Business Cases published in full.
Answer: The department has funded more than 2,000 active travel schemes since 2020, with many of these funded through the Active Travel Fund and wider cross-modal funding programmes. Responsibility for publishing business cases for these schemes resides with the ...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordActive TravelDepartment for TransportTabled 23 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12384More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether Active Travel England requires local authorities to reconcile differences between published promotional material and baseline traffic counts contained within Outline and Full Business Cases.
Answer: There is no requirement from Active Travel England for authorities to publish information on traffic counts. Active Travel England provides guidance on appraisal and monitoring and evaluation of active travel schemes to authorities. For transparency purpo...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordActive Travel: FinanceDepartment for TransportTabled 23 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12383More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department requires independent verification of baseline cycling and pedestrian counts used to support applications for Active Travel England funding.
Answer: Following publication of the Devolution White Paper in 2024, the Government has consolidated most local transport funding streams into a single flexible fund that enables local areas to align investment with priorities and reduce burdens on accessing the ...
Answered 1 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordRailway Stations: ConstructionDepartment for TransportTabled 23 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 12382More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what lessons learned reviews have been undertaken by her Department into delayed railway station construction projects since 2020.
Answer: Since 2020, the Department for Transport has undertaken a number of lessons‑learned reviews relevant to delayed railway station construction, including reviews of the sponsorship, governance, and assurance of major rail infrastructure programmes. The Depa...
Answered 1 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordMotor Vehicles: SoftwareDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 22 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11823More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the long-term competitiveness of the UK automotive industry in the context of increasing reliance on software-defined vehicle technologies.
Answer: This Government is supporting the long-term competitiveness of the UK automotive industry by backing the technologies that will shape the next generation of vehicles. Our flagship DRIVE35 initiative is supporting research and development in zero emission ...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordLiverpool Street StationDepartment for TransportTabled 22 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11822More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate has been made of the total funding gap associated with the Liverpool Street Station redevelopment scheme.
Answer: The Liverpool Street Redevelopment scheme is being promoted by Platform 4 on a commercial basis – no government funding has been allocated. Any specific queries regarding this scheme should be directed to Platform 4 (info@platform4.com). Schemes of this s...
Answered 30 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordLiverpool Street StationDepartment for TransportTabled 22 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11821More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact on the Liverpool Street Station redevelopment scheme of changes in senior leadership at Platform4 and Network Rail Property since January 2025.
Answer: Platform4, GBR Anglia & Network Rail Eastern region continue to work together on the scheme.The Liverpool Street Redevelopment scheme is being promoted by Platform 4 on a commercial basis – no government funding has been allocated. Any specific querie...
Answered 30 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordHigh Speed 2 Line: TunnelsDepartment for TransportTabled 22 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11820More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the HS2 six-monthly report to Parliament published in May 2026, what lessons learned and innovative construction methods were deployed in the completion of the north portal structure at the Ch
Answer: The Chiltern Tunnel North and South Portals have been specially engineered with perforated concrete hoods to prevent the possibility of sudden changes in air pressure and a resulting ‘sonic boom’ caused by trains entering and exiting the 10-mile-long tunn...
Answered 1 Jul 2026
Original Parliament recordAirspaceDepartment for TransportTabled 22 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11819More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many staff are assigned to delivery of the Lower Airspace Concept programme.
Answer: The delivery of changes to lower terminal airspace, as part of the Airspace Modernisation Programme, is undertaken by the airports for three of the four Clusters; Scotland, Western and Manchester. The fourth cluster, London, will be undertaken by the UK A...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordAirspaceDepartment for TransportTabled 22 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11818More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate she has made of the amount of fuel burn resulting from the time taken for Free Route Airspace implementation.
Answer: Following the implementation of the Free Route Airspace over Scotland, NATS have calculated a predicted reduction of emissions by approximately 17,000 tonnes of CO₂e per year.
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordDriving Tests: LincolnDepartment for TransportTabled 22 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11817More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the impact on learner drivers of average practical driving test waiting times at Lincoln Driving Test Centre; and what steps she is taking to reduce waiting times and increase te
Answer: The Government set out a comprehensive package of measures in April 2025 to tackle long waiting times, aiming to deliver around 10,000 additional tests per month. A key step was reintroducing overtime incentives.As well as this, the Driver and Vehicle Sta...
Answered 25 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordTrain Operating Companies: FinanceDepartment for TransportTabled 22 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11816More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 17 June to Question 9171, whether the £65.5 million difference between the forecast and actual reduction in Support for Passenger Rail Services in 2025-26 was attributable to (a) lower
Answer: The department does not intend to publish operator-level comparisons of subsidy requirement against forecast ahead of the publication of Train Operating Companies’ final audited accounts and financial statements. This is because the underlying revenue and...
Answered 29 Jun 2026
Original Parliament recordDriving TestsDepartment for TransportTabled 19 Jun 2026AnsweredUIN 11486More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what offence is committed by a person who books, amends, cancels or swaps a driving test on behalf of another person; under which statutory provision is that offence created; and what the maximum penalty is upo
Answer: If a person falsely asserts they are someone else to book, amend, cancel, or swap a practical driving test, they may commit an existing offence, and the case may be referred to the appropriate authorities. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency may also ...
Answered 23 Jun 2026
Original Parliament record
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