Travel advice from the Government descended into farce last night as ministers bickered over whether it is safe to book a summer break in the UK this year. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps sparked a furious backlash after declaring yesterday morning: ‘People shouldn’t be booking holidays right now – not domestically or internationally.’ As anger mounted, … Read more
Grant Shapps revealed today he has had talks with foreign politicians about an ‘internationally recognised system’ of allowing travellers to prove they have had a Covid jab. The Transport Secretary made the admission despite Downing Street insisting for weeks that it has no plans to introduce ‘vaccine passports’ that would prove the holder’s coronanvirus immunity. … Read more
Nicola Sturgeon was facing fury today after her Government demanded English authorities quarantine travellers flying into England if they were destined for Scotland. The First Minister was accused of trying to extend Scottish laws south of the border with the demand that would force England to lock people up in hotels for 10 days even … Read more
‘Green’ number plates meant for electric vehicles ‘can be illegally bought by petrol and diesel owners for just £20 due to checks loophole’ Transport Secretary Grant Shapps launched green number plates late last year The plates, on sale for under £20, give drivers free access to clean air zones But the AA has found major … Read more
Grant Shapps has ruled out scrapping so-called ‘smart motorways’, while admitting their name was a ‘misnomer’. The Transport Secretary said yesterday that he ‘wouldn’t have gone about it like this’ were he in charge when they were launched and said mistakes were made in their roll-out which initially made them less safe. But he told … Read more
Government says it is up to France to save Eurostar as cross-Channel rail operator begs for taxpayer cash after losing 95 per cent of passengers due to Covid Grant Shapps says UK wants Eurostar ‘to survive’ but ‘it’s not our company’ Over half of the shares of the cross-channel rail service are owned by France … Read more
For the people of the Blyth Valley, it’s payback time. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has announced a £34million fund to start to reinstate the passenger rail line between Newcastle and Ashington. This is seen by many as a reward for being the first constituency to breach the ‘red wall’ of seats extending across the Midlands … Read more
First look at new Union Jack number plates as EU flag vanishes from UK cars in the wake of Brexit European Union flags have been removed from new number plates Transport Secretary Grant Schapps tweeted an image of new design for cars Photocard driving licences also no longer display the EU flag, replaced by ‘UK’ … Read more
Road chiefs have pledged to accelerate the rollout of potentially lifesaving safety measures on smart motorways following crisis talks with Transport Secretary Grant Shapps. The minister ordered Highways England to bring forward the deadline for installing vital technology which can detect when vehicles are marooned and prevent collisions. More CCTV is to be rolled out to … Read more
Smart motorways are ‘inherently unsafe’ and ‘should be abandoned’, a police and crime commissioner says. Dr Alan Billings, PCC for South Yorkshire, has written to the Government saying the abolition of the hard shoulder should be ‘abandoned’ before more people die. In a letter to Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, Dr Billings accused Highways England of … Read more