Active Travel

Transport – in the House of Commons at on 20 November 2025.

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Photo of Allison Gardner Allison Gardner Labour, Stoke-on-Trent South

What steps she is taking to promote active travel.

Photo of Lilian Greenwood Lilian Greenwood Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport), Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

On 3 November, the Government launched a consultation to inform the development of the third cycling and walking investment strategy—CWIS3. That follows the announcement of £616 million of capital funding for active travel at the spending review, with allocations and details concerning revenue funding to follow in due course.

Photo of Allison Gardner Allison Gardner Labour, Stoke-on-Trent South

My constituents in Stoke-on-Trent South have told me that they cannot move safely around their community because vehicles parked on pavements force pedestrians into the road. Similarly, Staffordshire Sight Loss Council has raised with me the dangers that pavement parking creates for people with vision loss. Of course, that also impacts parents with buggies and wheelchair users. Will the Minister ensure that active travel planning and investment are used to tackle pavement parking and that accessibility is at the forefront, so that no one is excluded from safely moving around their community?

Photo of Lilian Greenwood Lilian Greenwood Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport), Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Earlier this year, we announced £300 million of funding for active travel for local authorities, supporting the delivery of high-quality pavements across England to enable more people to walk and 20 million new walk-to-school journeys by children and their parents. My hon. Friend is absolutely right that pavements must be clear and accessible. The Government recognise that pavement parking can endanger pedestrians, especially children, disabled people and parents trying to walk with prams and buggies, which is why I intend to publish our consultation response and announce our next steps on pavement parking policy very shortly.

Minister

Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.