Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the current average waiting time for a driving test in Great Britain; how many driving examiners are currently employed by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA); what assessment they have made of the number of driving examiners that need to be recruited to meet the demand for tests; and how long they forecast it will take to return driving test waiting times to levels prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) recognises the high demand for learners wanting to take their practical driving test following the suspension of routine driver training and testing during the pandemic.

As of 31 January 2022, the national average waiting time for a car practical driving test in Great Britain is 14.2 weeks.

The DVSA currently employs 1,710 driving examiners.

The DVSA is committed to the safe recovery of all its services as quickly as possible and has a number of measures in place to do this. These include offering a national recovery allowance and annual leave buy back to examiners, asking all those qualified to conduct tests, but who do not do so as part of their current day job, to return to conducting tests, and conducting out of hours testing (such as on public holidays and weekends).

The DVSA is also continuing with its campaign to recruit more driving examiners across Great Britain to increase the availability of driving test appointments, which it will keep under review to meet demand.