Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the (1) shortage of HGV drivers, and the (2) agreement to the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, on the delivery of goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

No assessment has been made specifically of any effects of the lorry driver shortage on the delivery of goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, though the Government agrees with industry assessments that there is a significant acute shortage of lorry drivers on top of a longer-term structural shortage. That is why on 20 July, the Department for Transport, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs jointly announced a suite of measures to support the industry in addressing the driver shortage. These measures will be focused on increasing the recruitment, retention and throughput of domestic drivers. More information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-announces-package-of-measures-to-support-road-haulage-industry.

On 21 July, the Government published a Command Paper (Northern Ireland Protocol: the way forward, CP502) outlining how the Northern Ireland Protocol is not working in its current form or delivering on its objectives. We are seeking to negotiate significant changes to the Northern Ireland Protocol to achieve a new balance that puts the UK-EU relationship on a stable footing. This must involve goods flowing much more freely into Northern Ireland from Great Britain.