HC Deb 20 November 2003 vol 413 cc1450-3W
Mr. Goodman

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many(a) fatalities and (b) serious injuries were incurred as a result of railway incidents in each year since 1973. [140005]

Passengers Rail stuff Others Trespass plus suicide Fatalities Serious injuries
1973 42 42 13 213 310 652
1974 26 38 14 276 354 811
1975 69 46 12 301 428 780
1976 30 46 21 299 396 721
1977 30 34 20 320 404 757
1978 47 45 22 345 459 762
1979 52 43 12 314 421 803
1980 26 32 11 360 429 807
1981 39 27 10 369 445 319
1982 20 27 10 296 353 251
1983 29 28 12 358 427 254
1984 39 25 12 339 415 259
1985 33 25 16 318 392 322
1986 32 16 24 325 397 372
1987 68 16 20 317 421 434
1988 69 16 12 334 431 596
1989 33 18 18 293 362 569
1990 37 22 19 308 386 550
19911 39 22 20 363 444 495
1992–93 18 11 10 264 303 536
1993–94 17 8 16 262 303 484
1994–95 17 9 16 264 306 485
1995–96 11 5 12 246 274 471
1996–97 17 2 6 252 277 310
1997–98 26 3 19 265 313 351
1998–99 20 4 15 247 286 376
1999–2000 47 5 13 274 339 340
2000–01 21 8 10 300 339 300
2001–02 10 5 17 275 307 351
2002–03 23 7 20 256 308 349
1 15 months from 1 January 1991 to 31 March 1992.

Mr. Drew

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with Network Rail on the implications for rail safety of the recent reduction in the number of managers with safety responsibilities in the organisation. [140123]

Mr. McNulty

Employee management at Network Rail is an operational matter for the company. Safety is the top priority in the network's operation and maintenance and all decisions taken by Network Rail are subject to meeting the company's Safety Case.

John Thurso

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the recommendations on rail safety made by Lord Cullen and Professor Uff being worked on by the industry which(a) have not been completed to the original timetable specified, indicating the expected date of implementation and (b) are within their specified deadline, listing by when they should be completed, and whether they are expected to meet this deadline in each case.[139740]

Mr. McNulty

The Southall, Ladbroke Grove and Train Protection public inquiries made a total of 295 recommendations. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) advise that 216 recommendations have been completed; 42 are either still within their specified deadline or a deadline was not specified; and 37 have not been completed to the original timetable specified.

The HSE advise that there is a range of reasons for action continuing on 37 of the recommendations beyond the dates put forward in the public inquiry reports, including the complexity of interrelated issues,

Mr. McNulty

Information on the number of fatalities and serious injuries since 1973 provided by the Health and Safety Executive's Railway Inspectorate is set out in the following table:

the need for legislative change, or because industry is taking a broader look than the recommendations strictly require. HSE and industry have discussed and agreed alternative timescales.

Details of each of the recommendations still to be completed, including action taken and to be taken, are given in the Health and Safety Commission's progress report—'HSC report on overall progress as of April 2003 on the remaining recommendations from the Rail Public Inquiries'—published in August 2003, which is available in the House Libraries. A summary of progress is given in the following table:

Public inquiry Total number of recommendations Completed Continuing
Southall 93 92 1
Train Protection 59 18 121
Ladbroke Grovel 1 89 68 21
Ladbroke Grove 2 74 38 136
Total 295 216 79
1 There are 11 recommendations where action holder reports completion, but where HSE is not yet able to endorse this view.

John Thurso

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the final reports into the rail crashes at(a) Hatfield and (b) Potters Bar to be published. [139741]

Mr. McNulty

The Health and Safety Executive have published comprehensive reports on both the Hatfield and Potters Bar crashes, which have included technical findings, safety critical information and recommendations. The final reports on both these crashes, which will concentrate on action taken by the industry to implement the recommendations from earlier reports, can only be published following the completion of any legal action arising from the investigations.

John Thurso

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the British Transport Police to conclude their investigations into the rail crash at Potters Bar. [139742]

Mr. McNulty

The British Transport Police have advised me that they submitted a substantial report on the Potters Bar accident to the Crime Prosecution Service (CPS) in August 2003 and that they now await CPS advice on the matter.

Mr. Paul Marsden

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many derailments there were in each month of the last year. [138827]

Mr. McNulty

The Health and Safety Executive's Railway Inspectorate reports that there were 67 derailments on all railways during the period 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003, which is reduction of 24 per cent. compared to the 2001–02 figure of 88. Of the 67, 42 occurred on Network Rail, four on London Underground, and 21 on tramways, metros or heritage railways. Two derailments resulted in fatalities and four resulted in minor injuries. A breakdown of the 67 derailments by month appears in the following table:

Month Network Rail LUL Other Total
April 2002 4 1 5
May 4 2 6
June 4 2 6
July 2 5 7
August 1 1 5 7
September 5 1 6
October 2 1 3
November 7 2 9
December 1 1 2
January 2 2 4
February 5 5
March 5 1 1 7
Total 42 4 21 67