Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of including hazard perception tests for drivers who have been diagnosed with glaucoma.

Glaucoma is a condition that can affect visual fields. Driving licence holders or applicants who have glaucoma in both eyes must notify the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and will be required to have an eyesight test to make sure that they meet the legally required visual field standards for driving.

The requirements for visual field can only be assessed through formal visual field testing. The Secretary of State for Transport’s Honorary Medical Advisory Panel for Visual Disorders and Driving advises that the appropriate visual field assessment for determining fitness to drive is a binocular Esterman field test or, exceptionally, a Goldmann perimetry assessment. Both of these tests must be carried out to strict criteria and are conducted to the exact specifications required to enable the DVLA to assess whether the visual field requirements for driving can be met.

There are no plans to use hazard perception tests for this purpose.