Motor Transport has joined the RHA and the CILT in calling on chancellor George Osborne to set aside £100m to fund the urgent recruitment and training of up to 45,000 new HGV drivers in his Autumn Statement on 3 December.

A survey of RHA members revealed 70% were suffering a shortage of drivers, with another 20% saying they expected to do so soon. Only 10% felt their business would not be affected. The survey drew a strong response from larger firms; typically those that deliver to DCs as well as manufacturing and major retail outlets.

RHA CEO Richard Burnett (pictured) is now pressing the government to fund targeted grants enabling UK residents to get their HGV licence and Driver CPC initial qualification. “The grants should be paid to employers and cut through the complex structure of local, and often inaccessible, initiatives,” said Burnett. “After years of hardship, the economy is slowly improving. But it’s up to the logistics industry to ensure this momentum is maintained. It is imperative for the sake of the continued recovery of the UK economy and viability of the road haulage sector that the chancellor acknowledges and addresses this crucial issue.”

The RHA is also urging members in the hardest-hit areas to write to their MP to make them aware of the issue. Neil Carmichael, Conservative MP for Stroud in Gloucestershire, has sought a debate on the driver shortage after raising the subject in the Commons last week.

The RHA estimated that the industry was facing a shortfall of 45,000 drivers in the run-up to Christmas, and said urgent action was needed to fill the gap by training unemployed UK residents – rather than recruiting HGV drivers from abroad.

In a recent debate on driver shortages held by MT in association with Transport Exchange Group, Andrew Waldron, MD of driver agency ADR Network, said: “Statistics on the number of HGV drivers claiming unemployment benefit show that over last summer there were 1,600 across all classes compared with 12,000 in the same period in 2009. In the West Midlands there were no drivers looking for work in the summer. This problem has been going on for years.”

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