We've all seen the significant and frustrating queues outside garages across Mid Sussex over the last few days, which have caused concerning disruption and traffic for so many constituents. I joined the Secretary of State for Transport for an update this morning and was part of cross Government meetings last week.
I want to make one thing absolutely clear from the get-go: there is no significant shortage of fuel HGV drivers. There are more significant needs in other parts of the HGV sector, which we are taking action to resolve and recruit, as well as retain more drivers.
I want to implore everyone to only fill up your tanks when you really need to, if we return to normal fuel usage the queues will die down quickly. Remember, our emergency workers, teachers and carers need fuel to enable them to do their vital jobs, and this is currently being threatened by the unnecessary panic around fuel. Please do be patient and understanding of other people's needs.
4,000 new training opportunities have been created by the Department for Education, so if you want to join the sector there is a new route in. I also believe both employers and the wider sector need to make the long-term working experience of drivers better. I know my colleagues are working with representatives in the sector to find new solutions.
Another issue is driver testing, which was suspended during the lockdown due to Covid impact. Testing has now restarted, with capacity already increased. To go further, the Government has also recently announced measures to significantly increase the number of HGV driving tests each year by up to 50,000, by streamlining the process of securing a licence for certain vehicles and speeding up the test itself. These new measures follow a public consultation over the summer, which saw thousands of respondents, including industry leaders, support the move as a positive step to help the sector tackle the lorry driver shortage. The appropriate licensing regulations will shortly be laid before Parliament to get on with making an impact on this challenge.
More broadly, in order to support the development and training of more HGV drivers, the Government is supporting the development of apprenticeships, including a standard to train lorry drivers. A new revised standard became available in August attracting £7,000 in apprenticeship levy funding.
Some have tried to claim, somewhat falsely, that this shortage of HGV drivers is as a direct result of our withdrawal from the EU. However, there are currently driver shortages across Europe as well, and it's clear pay and working conditions for drivers and an ageing workforce across the entire continent need to improve.
DWP is also developing a scheme to train jobseekers in HGV driving. The Flexible Support Fund is available to help the unemployed or those in receipt of Universal Credit renew their Driver Certificate of Professional Competence.
I understand that DfT has also provided a grant for the non-profit initiative Road to Logistics to train military service leavers, ex-offenders and the long term unemployed to move into jobs in the logistics sector, including lorry driving.
I will continue to support cross-Government Ministers' efforts to resolve this situation, but in the meantime, as I said at the beginning, please only go to get petrol when you need to, as there is no fuel shortage at refineries but catching up with consumer demand is what is causing stations to run dry. I will keep constituents updated when I hear more.