Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to add HGV drivers to the shortage occupation list to make it easier for skilled workers to obtain visas.

For an occupation to be placed on the Shortage Occupation List (SOL), it needs to be eligible under the Skilled Worker route of the Points Based System.

The independent Migration Advisory Committee found the occupation of HGV driver did not meet the requirements under the Skilled Worker route to be eligible. We therefore will not be adding this occupation to the SOL.

In response to the current exceptional circumstances, we have made provision for poultry workers, pork butchers and HGV drivers in food distribution to enter the UK on a short-term basis to support the food and haulage sectors. Yet long term solutions to recruitment issues relating to HGV drivers lie with employers in the sector, where investing in training and offering competitive terms and conditions should be the focus, rather than looking to immigration.