Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of requiring learner drivers to complete accredited CPR and defibrillator awareness training as part of the process of obtaining a full driving licence; and whether she plans to introduce such a requirement.

Information about first aid, including CPR, is already included in the official learning materials by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), the Highway Code and Driving Essential Skills. Questions are then asked as part of the driver theory test to check learning has taken place.

The requirement for learner drivers to complete accredited CPR and defibrillator awareness training as part of the process of obtaining a full driving licence would require legislative change. There are no current plans to introduce mandatory CPR training as part of the learning to drive process.

DVSA believes testing this knowledge at theory test stage is the correct and proportionate approach. It is important the practical driving test examines as rigorously as possible a person’s ability to drive safely in different road and traffic conditions.