Lords
Debate
13 July 2026
Railways Bill
My Lords, what a joy it is to hear from three former Transport Secretaries whom I have worked for. I predict hearing from a former deputy chair of Transport for London whom I have worked for shortly as well.
I know, as many do in this Chamber, that passengers and taxpayers have had enough of the cu…
Lords
Proceedings
8 July 2026
9 contributions
Maritime and Coastguard Agency
My Lords, in the light of a Westminster Hall debate last week, representations from coastguard rescue officers and unions, and other information, the Maritime Minister in the other place has been clear on the need to listen and to reflect on the way forward, which he is doing. That is why further sc…
I am not sure that I am as grateful to my noble kinsman as he is to me—but, as usual, I will answer his questions. This change has not taken place yet; it is due to take place in September. There is time for my colleague, the Maritime Minister in the other place, to listen and reflect. I have talked…
+7 more contributions in this session
Lords
Debate
7 July 2026
Railways Bill
My Lords, it is a pleasure to present the Railways Bill for Second Reading today. Before turning to the substance of the Bill, I would like to acknowledge that today marks the 21st anniversary of the 2005 attacks on London's transport network. As a former commissioner of Transport for London, my tho…
Lords
Proceedings
1 July 2026
9 contributions
Drink-Driving
My Lords, the Government recognise the role that innovation and technology can play in reducing drink-driving and repeat offending, alongside effective enforcement, education and penalties. Through the road safety strategy, we consulted on measures to tackle drink-driving and drug-driving, including…
My noble friend is a great advocate for better policing of drink-driving. I understand the sad reasons why, and our hearts go out to everybody who has suffered bereavement or injury through drink-driving. Alcolocks are widely used internationally, and the evidence shows that they reduce reoffending …
+7 more contributions in this session
Lords
Committee Stage
30 June 2026
West Midlands Combined Authority (Key Route Network) (Amendment) Order 2026
My Lords, I am pleased to say that this draft order was considered by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments and the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee without any concerns raised. It relates to the key route network of the West Midlands Combined Authority, which, sadly, I will hereafter…
Lords
Proceedings
23 June 2026
7 contributions
DVLA: Staffing Levels
My Lords, the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency regularly monitors staffing levels against demand for its services and changes staffing levels where necessary within agreed limits. For example, the DVLA has recently taken on more staff to meet increased demand for its drivers, medical and contac…
I hope that the noble Lord received my letter of 12 June, in reply to his email to me on 14 May. If he took the simple action outlined in my letter, he should now have his licence and be driving again. There are 53 million driving licence holders in Great Britain. In 2024-25, the DVLA received 837,5…
+5 more contributions in this session
Lords
Proceedings
22 June 2026
8 contributions
HS2 Ltd: Consultants
My Lords, HS2 Ltd spent £77.8 million on consultancy in 2025-2026. This targeted advice was used to support the fundamental reset and its scope and cost. This is a significant undertaking in terms of complexity, pace and scale, and could not all be done in-house. Under new leadership, HS2 Ltd is bei…
I should say from this Dispatch Box that the Government, too, are immensely saddened by the events in Bedford last Friday. Our sympathies are wholly with the relatives of the deceased driver and all those affected by the accident. The Secretary of State for Transport will be making a Statement later…
+6 more contributions in this session
Lords
Committee Stage
10 June 2026
Airports Slot Allocation (Alleviation of Usage Requirements) Regulations 2026
My Lords, airport slots are permissions that allow airlines to take off and land at specific dates and times. They are a valuable resource at capacity-constrained airports. The UK currently has nine such airports, including the main five London airports—Gatwick, Heathrow, London City, Luton and Stan…
Lords
Proceedings
9 June 2026
9 contributions
E-scooters and E-bikes
The Government recognise the role that light electric vehicles, including electric cycles and scooters, can play in supporting economic growth, improving health and reducing emissions. The electric cycles that comply with regulations are already permitted on public roads, and the Government recently…
The first thing to say is that we absolutely sympathise with somebody with such terrible injuries in those circumstances; our hearts go out to them and their family. As part of the powers the Government have taken on shared cycles, we will have powers to set insurance requirements. No decisions have…
+7 more contributions in this session
Lords
Statutory Instrument
9 June 2026
Clean Air Zones Central Services (Fees) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
My Lords, this debate will deal with both the statutory instrument and the regret amendment laid by the noble Lord, Lord Moylan. These regulations make two principal amendments to the Clean Air Zones Central Services (Fees) Regulations 2020. First, the regulations extend the period during which loca…
Lords
Debate
2 June 2026
Civil Aviation (Consumer Protection and Regulatory Reform) Bill [HL]
My Lords, civil aviation is a cornerstone of our national prosperity, supporting jobs, investment and connectivity across the United Kingdom. In 2025 alone, UK airports handled 2.1 million commercial flights and nearly 300 million passengers. This highlights both the scale of the sector and the need…
Lords
Proceedings
20 May 2026
2 contributions
King’s Speech
My Lords, it is an honour to be closing today’s debate on behalf of His Majesty’s Government. I extend my thanks to His Majesty for his gracious Speech and to all noble Lords for their thoughtful contributions, except perhaps for the last one, which I shall mostly ignore.
I begin by echoing what my…
The process by which bus franchising was established in Manchester was absolutely tortuous, although he was enabled to do it. The purpose of the bus services Bill is to make it easier to do, but the results are spectacularly good.
I have not been watching the clock. My time is up. I should say that…
Lords
Committee Stage
27 April 2026
3 contributions
Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) Regulations 2026
My Lords, port state control is the system used by the United Kingdom and other countries to inspect foreign-registered visiting ships to ensure that they meet the necessary international safety and pollution prevention standards. These regulations apply not to British ships but only to foreign-regi…
My Lords, I thank the Minister and his officials for their helpful briefing last week. As we have heard, this instrument revokes and replaces the Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) Regulations 2011, which implemented the UK’s commitment under the Paris memorandum of understanding and the associa…
+1 more contribution in this session
Lords
Statutory Instrument
20 April 2026
Aviation Safety (Amendment) Regulations 2026
That the draft Regulations laid before the House on 24 February be approved. Relevant document: 54th Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee. Considered in Grand Committee on 15 April.
Lords
Oral Questions
20 April 2026
9 contributions
Trains: Punctuality
I thank my noble friend for his very comprehensive Answer and the very important work that he is doing to improve the quality of our railway. When I was responsible for delivery in No. 10 years ago, I asked DfT officials why performance was so much worse in the autumn than in the rest of the year. T…
My Lords, what are the Government planning to do to put a stop to the current situation where Northern services in the north-west have had their timetable cut by half on Sundays, because Sundays fall outside of conductors’ regular working week? When will that be resolved so that passengers can trave…
+7 more contributions in this session
Lords
Committee Stage
15 April 2026
3 contributions
Aviation Safety (Amendment) Regulations 2026
My Lords, this instrument has two objectives. The first is to amend Article 71 of the assimilated basic regulation to give the Civil Aviation Authority more flexibility to grant exemptions to the basic regulation. The second is to remove a criminal sanction that has never been used. The removal of t…
My Lords, the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee, as the Minister mentioned, has looked at this and suggested that the House may wish to seek assurances from the Minister regarding the use of exemptions. In the House of Commons Delegated Legislation Committee yesterday, the Minister said:
“I …
+1 more contribution in this session
Lords
Debate
13 April 2026
4 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
My Lords, this Government are committed to making travel by taxi or private hire vehicle as safe as it can possibly be. We are committed to the reforms needed as a result of the work of the noble Baroness, Lady Casey, and regard the taxi and private hire vehicle elements of the Bill as the first ste…
My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Pidgeon, and the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, for their contributions. Before I respond on Amendments 280A and 287A, I will briefly address the guidance question raised by the noble Lord, Lord Moylan. The department has for many years issued guidance related to…
+2 more contributions in this session
Lords
Debate
13 April 2026
High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill
1. That if— (a) a High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill is first brought to this House from the House of Commons in this Session or in any subsequent Session of this Parliament, and (b) proceedings on the Bill in this House are not completed in the Session in which the Bill is so brought (“Sessi…
Lords
Oral Questions
13 April 2026
8 contributions
Rail Freight
My Lords, it is encouraging to hear the Minister repeat the Government’s commitment to that target, which they inherited, of course, from the previous Government and which we support. However, the rail freight industry is, I think, finding it increasingly unconvincing, because the Government have re…
My Lords, my noble friend the Minister mentioned the issue of competition for rail freight. I am pleased to hear him say that the Government are keen to grow rail freight, but it is difficult to see, in the text of the Bill, how Great British Railways, which will have control of most passenger servi…
+6 more contributions in this session
Lords
Debate
26 March 2026
2 contributions
English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
My Lords, I thank the noble Lords, Lord Moylan, Lord Shipley and Lord Bassam, and the noble Baronesses, Lady McIntosh, Lady Pidgeon and Lady Bennett of Manor Castle, for their amendments, and my noble friend Lord Berkeley for his contribution. I say in response to him that this Government are very m…
I say to the noble Lord that the successors of those people have changed their minds, so it is about time that he did, too. We have had the experience of three mayors, over 25 years, and there is no evidence that they have been incapable of taking these decisions. In 1999, there had not been a mayor…
Lords
Statutory Instrument
25 March 2026
Train Driving Licences and Certificates (Amendment) Regulations 2026
That the draft Regulations laid before the House on 10 February be approved. Considered in Grand Committee on 23 March. Relevant document: 52nd Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee (special attention drawn to the instrument).
Lords
Oral Questions
25 March 2026
10 contributions
Small Boat Deaths: Cranston Inquiry Report
I am grateful to my noble friend—he has answered half my question already. The report has highlighted that there are very serious deficiencies in our ability to rescue people at sea and that we compare unfavourably with Italy and Greece, which have more and better-equipped boats. The RNLI and Border…
My Lords, this report follows on from a statement made by the UK Government on 4 February at the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. On safety at sea, it says that
“it is essential to promote a common, coherent and effective implementation of the legal framework for search and rescue p…
+8 more contributions in this session
Lords
Oral Questions
24 March 2026
9 contributions
Public Transport: Accessibility
My Lords, given that the Government have cancelled a significant number of Access for All schemes which had not been fully funded, will the Minister commit to a replacement long-term programme of accessibility works on the railway to ensure that there is a pipeline of improvements, and to help the s…
My Lords, I congratulate the Minister on the work he has done on accessibility; he has real experience and commitment. To that end, does he consider so-called floating bus stops to be inclusive by design and accessible for all? That is but one example; whether it is trains, taxis, buses, streets or …
+7 more contributions in this session
Lords
Committee Stage
23 March 2026
3 contributions
Train Driving Licences and Certificates (Amendment) Regulations 2026
My Lords, these regulations will lower the minimum age at which the Office of Rail and Road, ORR, can issue a train driving licence to a person to drive trains on the mainline railway in Great Britain from 20 to 18. Under the regime, applicants will continue to be required to satisfy the same condit…
My Lords, I thank the Minister for introducing these regulations so thoroughly. We on these Benches welcome the statutory instrument, which presents a pragmatic, evidence-based approach to modernising our railway workforce and opening up highly skilled and well-paid careers to the next generation.
…
+1 more contribution in this session
Lords
Oral Questions
19 March 2026
7 contributions
Rail Infrastructure Resilience: Storms and Floods
My Lords, I am very grateful to my noble friend for that Answer and to know how much work Network Rail is doing to mitigate the effect of global warming. But when we look at the south-west, we see most of it cut off for several days—weeks, occasionally—not just by high tides, which are going to get …
My Lords—
+5 more contributions in this session