Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of providing compensation for businesses for lost revenue as a result of the ending of B+E licence testing on 20 September 2021.

The heavy goods vehicle driver shortage is well documented and the Government has been considering a range of measures that will help the industry recover from the pandemic.

The Department and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) will continue to encourage people who want to drive a car and trailer to get professional training with providers to promote road safety and help support those businesses.

The DVSA is exploring options for an industry-led accreditation that could offer a standardised non-statutory testing approach, and is engaging with key stakeholders, trainers and insurers, to discuss this issue.

The DVSA is also in discussions with the training industry to understand their capacity to deliver the off-road manoeuvres element of the vocational test and will work with them to develop a robust and clear process by which to assess, accredit and audit any trainers who wish to assess the manoeuvres element of the test.

The DVSA is establishing a new business manager role to work with vocational trainers as a local contact to better understand their current and future needs. This will help the agency to be more responsive to vocational trainers needs and help support businesses and people employed to deliver training.