§ Dr. CableTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is his most recent estimate of the number of defective rails requiring urgent attention by Railtrack for safety reasons in each regional train operator's franchise and in total. [134895]
§ Mr. HillOn Friday 27 October there were 276 sites where Railtrack engineers were checking for evidence of gauge corner cracking, the fault which is believed to have caused the accident at Hatfield.
§ Mr. MitchellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what rules govern regular consultation and exchange of information and opinion between representatives of train crews and representatives of train operators, Railtrack and other agencies related to safe operation of railways; how often such meetings take place; what reports are made to him concerning such deliberations; and if he will review such rules. [135448]
449W
§ Mr. HillThe current legal requirements relating to worker consultation in relation to train crews are set out in: the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974; the European "Framework" Directive 89/391/EEC; the Safety Representatives and Safety Committees Regulations 1977; the Health and Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations 1996; and the Railways (Safety Case) Regulations 1994. The new Railway (Safety Case) Regulations 2000, which will come into force on 31 December 2000, will strengthen the arrangements for consultation and communication. The recently mandated confidential incident reporting and analysis system (CIRAS) allows for regular quarterly meetings to discuss and probe particular adverse events. The unions are represented on the Railway Industry Advisory Committee (RIAC) and Railtrack's Safety Advisory Body (SAB). Details of the meetings taking place under these provisions are not normally communicated to the Secretary of State. The Rail Safety Monitoring Group also includes union representation and is responsible for monitoring implementation of the industry's safety commitments announced at the second Rail Safety Summit in November 1999. The Secretary of State is informed of the outcome of these meetings.
§ Mr. MitchellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will add to the current remit of the Railways and Health and Safety Inspectorates, assessment of potential systems and structures of financing, assisting planning, maintaining, contracting for reward and operating railway services in the United Kingdom in respect of their optimum contributions to safety. [135449]
§ Mr. HillThe role of HM Railway Inspectorate, a division of the Health and Safety Executive, is to secure the proper control of risks to the health and safety of employees, passengers and others who might be affected by the operation of Britain's railways. The Health and Safety Executive's remit already extends to considering the implications for health and safety of structural changes within the railway industry and taking action where appropriate to secure the maintenance of health and safety standards. It would not be appropriate to pre-empt the outcome of Lord Cullen's wide-ranging public inquiry into railway safety by proposing major changes to the Executive's functions at the present time.
§ Mr. Bob RussellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many people on passenger trains were killed in railway accidents in each of the last three years. [135100]
§ Mr. HillThe number of people on passenger trains killed in railway accidents is shown in the following table produced by the Health and Safety Executive's HM Railway Inspectorate.
Category 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 Total Passenger 14 6 33 53 Railway Staff 0 0 2 2 Total 14 6 35 55 Comprehensive data on railway safety can be found in HM Chief Inspector of Railways Annual Reports on Railway Safety in Great Britain, copies of which can be found in both House Libraries.