Chancellor George Osborne has invited RHA chief executive Richard Burnett to a “formal roundtable discussion” with the Treasury and DfT to discuss possible government “intervention” to address the HGV driver shortage.
The RHA has called for government grants to train UK residents to become HGV drivers rather than see an influx of foreign drivers to meet demand. However, the call appeared to have fallen on deaf ears in last month’s autumn statement.
In a letter written after the Treasury failed to back the initiative, the RHA said: “We support the chancellor’s objectives set in the autumn statement – but the economy needs to have enough lorry drivers if he is going to deliver.”
However, in response to the RHA’s letter, Osborne acknowledged the “crucial importance” of the road haulage sector to the UK economy and expressed his concern that the industry is struggling to attract enough drivers.
