Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an equality impact assessment of the Driver Services Recovery Programme.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) takes its Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) responsibilities seriously. The DVSA has advised Ministers about the steps it is taking to reduce car practical driving test waiting times. Ministers have agreed a package of measures that the DVSA is implementing, and the average waiting time for a practical driving test is reducing as a result.

As part of the advice it presented to Ministers, the DVSA included a PSED assessment, as it does with all ministerial advice. The agency did not identify any PSED issues that required action at the time, but the agency keeps the PSED situation under review and would take action if necessary.