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1671343

registered interest
date	20/11/2023
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to address skills shortages (a) among HGV drivers and (b) in the road transport sector.
tabling member constituency	South Holland and The Deepings
tabling member printed	Sir John Hayes
uin	2467
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/11/2023 answer text <p>The Government has a multi-pronged approach to tackling this problem. It has invested in skills bootcamps to train up to 11,000 more people to become HGV drivers to help tackle the HGV driver shortage. These are free, short, intensive courses to train drivers to be road ready and gain a Category C or Category C&amp;E licence.</p><p>The Government is also supporting lorry driver training through apprenticeships. The Large Goods Vehicle Driver apprenticeship, which trains drivers to gain their Cat C&amp;E licence, has recently had its funding level increased to £8,000. The Urban Driver apprenticeship which trains drivers to Cat C standard is also available with up to £5,000 of funding.</p><p>The Department for Transport has also supported the non-profit initiative Road to Logistics to train military service leavers, ex-offenders and the long term unemployed to move into jobs in the logistics sector, including lorry driving.</p><p>These measures are working with industry reporting that the acute driver shortage has eased. We continue to work with the sector to monitor the availability of drivers and tackle the issues affecting both the recruitment and retention of HGV drivers.</p><p>Following the actions raised during the driver shortages (buses and coaches) summit held in November 2022, the Department plans to consult on removing the regulatory 50km restriction on 18- to 20-year-old bus and coach drivers driving a regular service, and allowing prospective drivers to undertake the theory and off-road manoeuvre tests prior to being granted a provisional bus license. Since the summit, figures from the Confederation of Passenger Transport show that the vacancy rate for bus drivers in Great Britain fell from a high of 9.3% in September 2022 to 6.5% in May 2023.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 28/11/2023 10:08:44 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	350 label Biography information for Sir John Hayes

1400398

registered interest
date	06/01/2022
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle the shortage of heavy goods vehicle drivers who provide (a) refuse collection and (b) other local services.
tabling member constituency	Wansbeck
tabling member printed	Ian Lavery
uin	98956
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2022 answer text <p>The Government has taken 32 specific measures to deal with the shortage of HGV drivers across all sectors including refuse collection and other local services. These measures include funding for HGV driving apprenticeships such as the Category C Urban Driver standard, Skills Bootcamps to train 11,000 more drivers, and support for jobseekers.</p><p>In addition, we have taken steps to increase DVSA’s capacity for HGV driving tests to 3,200 per week, an increase of over 100% compared to pre-pandemic levels. Test capacity now exceeds demand. Despite the increase in vocational driving licence applications and licence renewals there are no delays in processing, and all vocational provisional licences and licence renewals are being processed within five working days, unless further medical checks are required.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 13/01/2022 11:07:13 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4139 label Biography information for Ian Lavery

1388860

registered interest
date	16/12/2021
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Transport, what recent steps he has taken to tackle the shortage of heavy goods vehicle drivers.
tabling member constituency	Putney
tabling member printed	Fleur Anderson
uin	94561
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2022 answer text <p>The Government has taken 32 specific measures to deal with the shortage of HGV drivers. These include funding for apprenticeships, 11,000 places on Skills Bootcamp training backed by £34 million, increasing the supply of vocational driving tests, prioritising vocational driving licence applications, and investing £32.5 million in roadside facilities for HGV drivers. These are listed on gov.uk.</p><p> </p><p>Our measures are working. The number of available HGV driving tests has increased by 90% compared to pre-pandemic levels and currently stands at 3,200 tests per week. Test capacity now exceeds demand and the provision of vocational tests is not a barrier to people becoming HGV drivers. Despite the increase in vocational driving licence applications and licence renewals, there are no delays in processing and all new applications are being processed within five working days, unless further medical checks are required. Recent assessments by industry bodies such as Logistics UK suggest that the shortfall in drivers has started to reduce.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 07/01/2022 12:30:45 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4788 label Biography information for Fleur Anderson

1387813

registered interest
date	14/12/2021
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the devolved administrations on the level of potential disruption to UK supply chains over the Christmas 2021 period as a result of the heavy goods vehicle driver shortage.
tabling member constituency	Newport West
tabling member printed	Ruth Jones
uin	93046
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/12/2021 answer text <p>Ministers and officials engage regularly with representatives of the devolved administrations on a wide range of topics including the availability of HGV drivers. Most recently, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Department for Transport, Baroness Vere of Norbiton met with Ministers from the devolved administrations to discuss the HGV driver shortage on 9 December 2021.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has implemented 32 specific interventions to date to help alleviate the existing HGV driver shortages. Recent assessments by industry bodies suggest that the shortfall in drivers is starting to ease.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 21/12/2021 15:14:35 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4716 label Biography information for Ruth Jones

1380124

registered interest
date	19/11/2021
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to tackle the shortage of HGV drivers; and what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing drivers to convert HGV licences obtained in Australia, and other countries, for use in the UK.
tabling member constituency	Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney
tabling member printed	Gerald Jones
uin	78461
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/11/2021 answer text <p>We have taken decisive action to address the acute HGV driver shortage, with 30 specific measures taken by the Government already. These include providing support and training for new HGV drivers, expanding HGV driver testing capacity and improving licencing processes. We are also investing £32.5 million in improving roadside facilities for hauliers. We will continue to encourage the road haulage industry to make employment as an HGV driver more attractive.</p><p> </p><p>The exchange of HGV licences for a UK equivalent is dependent on training, testing and licensing standards in the issuing country being equivalent to those in the UK. Applications for recognition are subject to assessment of testing and licensing standards, public consultation, introduction of legislation and agreement of reciprocity. Currently only EU/EEA, Swiss, Crown Dependency and Gibraltar HGV licences are recognised for exchange in the UK.</p><p> </p><p>Our points-based immigration system makes clear that employers should focus on investing in our domestic workforce, rather than relying on labour from abroad.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 24/11/2021 14:17:42 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4501 label Biography information for Gerald Jones

1379537

registered interest
date	17/11/2021
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to provide further support to the DVLA in helping to reduce the shortage of HGV drivers.
tabling member constituency	Ilford South
tabling member printed	Sam Tarry
uin	76859
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/11/2021 answer text <p>The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency has focused extra resource on vocational driving licence applications to support the driver shortage. This has been successful with routine applications for vocational driving licences, including for HGVs, now being processed within normal turnaround times of five working days. The DVLA has recently processed more than 40,000 applications for vocational licences in just 25 working days. It may take longer to process cases where medical investigations are needed.</p><p>On 15 November, legislation came into force to remove the requirement for HGV drivers to obtain entitlement to drive rigid lorries before being able to take a test to drive articulated lorries. This has streamlined the licensing process with the aim of getting fully qualified HGV drivers on the road as soon as possible.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 24/11/2021 11:52:34 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4829 label Biography information for Sam Tarry

1378646

registered interest
date	15/11/2021
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the shortage of HGV drivers across the UK; and what consultation has taken place with representatives of the road haulage industry in connection with that assessment.
tabling member constituency	East Renfrewshire
tabling member printed	Kirsten Oswald
uin	75010
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/11/2021 answer text <p>The Department for Transport is working across Government and with the road haulage industry to address the current HGV driver shortage, which is an issue affecting many countries worldwide. For example, the International Road Transport Union predicts a gap of 185,000 drivers by 2027 in Germany. Current trade association estimates of the UK driver shortage range from 85,000 to 90,000. The current shortage includes both a chronic, long-term, component and an acute element. The Office for National Statistics estimates the number of drivers to be 268,000 in the 12 months ending June 2021, which is 39,000 fewer than the year ending June 2019.</p><p>The Department has held regular meetings with the road haulage industry and trade unions regarding driver shortages and its impact on supply chains The Government has taken decisive action to address the acute driver shortage, with 30 specific measures already taken to support driver training, increase the availability of driving tests and improve the standard and availability of roadside facilities. These measures are working. There is no backlog of HGV licence applications and we are seeing over a thousand more people than normal apply for a licence each week.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 18/11/2021 14:38:28 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4413 label Biography information for Kirsten Oswald

1363881

registered interest
date	27/10/2021
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the devolved Administrations on tackling the shortage of HGV drivers; and if he will make statement.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	64614
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2021 answer text <p>We have engaged with devolved administrations through cross-Government discussions, which involves topics such as the recruitment of HGV drivers.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 04/11/2021 12:28:45 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1363902

registered interest
date	27/10/2021
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the ongoing shortage of heavy goods vehicle drivers.
tabling member constituency	Batley and Spen
tabling member printed	Kim Leadbeater
uin	64762
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2021 answer text <p>Cabinet Ministers attend regular meetings organised by the National Economic Recovery Taskforce (NERT) to agree measures and actions to address the heavy goods vehicle driver shortage. Cabinet Ministers also engage in smaller groups to discuss specific policy areas.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 04/11/2021 12:22:22 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	4923 label Biography information for Kim Leadbeater

1361294

registered interest
date	19/10/2021
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Vacancies
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has contingencies in place to ensure that HGV drivers are available to deliver school meals during the period of driver shortages and supply chain issues.
tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
uin	58776
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/10/2021 answer text <p>The Department for Transport is committed to finding solutions to mitigate the effects of the HGV driver shortage and has already taken 25 proactive actions in recent weeks.</p><p>The Government routinely considers contingency arrangements and expects schools and catering companies supplying them to do the same.</p> answering member constituency Copeland answering member printed Trudy Harrison question first answered 27/10/2021 16:00:28 answering member 4593 label Biography information for Trudy Harrison
tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson