Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 October 2026 to Question 35496, what specific road safety risks were identified in the previous Government's consultation on extending minibus driving entitlements.

The previous Government’s 2022 Driver Licensing Call for Evidence did not identify specific road safety risks associated with extending category D1 minibus driving entitlement to category B car licence holders. However, we know that not everyone who takes the D1 test passes. Latest figures from the DVSA report that in 2025, 552 people failed their D1 test out of a total 3,069 tests and as of September this year, 408 out of 2,219 tests have resulted in failures.

Any proposed change to the category D1 licensing regime would require an adequate evidence base demonstrating that appropriate standards of driver competence, passenger safety and the safety of other road users would be maintained.