Question Time
Based on the TV show of the same name, this session will allow attendees to ask questions to a panel of experts.
- Day two (Thursday 10 Nov): 12.00 - 13.00
Confirmed panellists:
ACC Steve Barry, Sussex Police, NPCC & DfT
Steve Barry has been with Sussex Police since the start of his career in 1993. He has predominantly worked in uniform policing across all parts of Sussex and more recently has focused on specialist operational policing such as roads, firearms and public order. Steve was the national lead for collision investigation and road safety enforcement technology but has now taken on police pursuits.
He has been seconded to the DfT since 2019 representing the NPCC on the DfT/Home Office review of roads policing.
Steve obtained a post-graduate Master's degree in International Criminal Law from Sussex University in 2004. Steve enjoys cycling and country walks. He also enjoys visiting his family who live in France where he speaks French fluently. Steve is married, has four daughters and lives in East Sussex.
Meera Naran MBE, Independent Road Safety Campaigner
Meera Naran MBE is an independent road safety campaigner and public speaker helping to ensure we have safer drivers on safer roads.
In May 2018, she lost her eight-year-old son Dev, in a smart motorway collision on the M6. Since that time, she has successfully campaigned for the adoption of 18 national policy changes with a commitment from the Department for Transport to spend £900m including changes to the Highway Code and on-going driver education.
Among her many campaign successes has been the decision by the Department for Transport to pause the smart motorway rollout until five years of safety data is available. She is also currently lobbying for a change in legislation to implement life-saving technology such as autonomous emergency braking, proposed as Dev's Law, and continues to work to ensure that no one else goes through the pain of losing a loved one in the way she and her family did. She is also a Trustee of the road safety charity, Brake.
Meera is a qualified Pharmacist and a Senior Lecturer in Post Graduate Clinical Pharmacy at De Montfort University, Leicester.
Simon D’Vali, Chair, West Yorkshire Safer Roads Steering Group
Simon has 29 years’ experience as a civil engineer specialising in road safety and casualty reduction delivery programmes. He has worked alongside public health for 17 years and assisted with the integration of the service into Bradford Council.
Simon currently chairs the West Yorkshire Safer Roads Steering Group and has previously chaired Core Cities and the West Yorkshire Casualty Prevention Partnership.
He is also a member of the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS) and has given evidence in Parliament at Transport Select Committees on new Government legislation around road safety.
Sam Merison, Director, Road Safety GB Academy
Sam Merison is the road safety manager for both the London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames and Wandsworth Council. Sam has more than 17 years' experience of working in road safety within local authorities, predominantly education and training, but more recently on the policy and engineering side as well.
Having begun his career at Kingston upon Thames with a heavy steer on combining road safety with sustainable travel, he went on to manage a large team in Richmond, comprising staff ranging from road safety officers, school travel planners, school crossing patrols, to cycling and pedestrian instructors. A staffing merger saw him take Wandsworth under his wing as well, which saw him charged with delivering engineering interventions on some of London’s busy road network.
He was head of the Road Safety GB Academy between 2013 and 2020, a period which saw the introduction of a suite of courses and framework of training for road safety professionals. Sam is currently a director of the Academy as well as vice-chair of the Road Safety GB London regional group.
David Davies, Executive Director, PACTS
David Davies has a background in sustainable transport, road safety, public sector scrutiny, planning and research. He has worked in local government and transport consultancies, including five years at the Transport Research Laboratory. In 2003 he moved to the Audit Commission, and subsequently to the UK Parliament House of Commons Transport Select Committee
He led inquiries into road safety, aviation strategy, HS2, national policy for ports and bus competition. He has been the executive director of PACTS since January 2013 and has emphasised its thought-leadership role.
He is a member of various DfT advisory committees including the Motorists Forum and Road Safety Delivery Group.
He manages the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Transport Safety and advises MPs and Peers of all parties. He plays the role of critical friend to civil servants and ministers.