Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of reserving a proportion of driving test appointments for candidates requiring a resit of a test to reduce (a) test waiting lists and (b) costs for learner drivers.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) does not operate a cancellation service or reserve a proportion of driving test appointments for candidates requiring a resit of their practical driving test. DVSA advises learners to regularly check for new appointments. Test appointments are released on a rolling 24-week basis, and additional appointments are added as soon as they become available.

All learner drivers have their own valid reason for wanting to take their test as soon as they can. Prioritising learners who have not been successful passing their previous practical test over another learner driver would not be fair.

DVSA has published guidance targeted at family and friends of learner drivers, which can be found on GOV.UK at supervise a learner driver. If a learner can access private practice, this might help reduce their learning to drive costs. They can then pick up lessons with their driving instructor prior to their booked test.