NASP Update

This morning, partly in reaction to the Secretary of State’s announcement of further measures to tackle test waiting times, and partly to escalate our concerns regarding the ongoing issues with testing beyond DVSA to Ministerial level, NASP has written to the Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander, Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport) Lilian Greenwood, Chairman of the Transport Select Committee Ruth Cadbury and wider members of the Transport Select Committee itself.

In this email we acknowledge and welcome the announcements made by the Secretary of State today regarding measures to tackle test waiting times. As you can see from our letter to DVSA, we have been questioning why personnel with testing ability have not been returned to the frontline again, after it was deemed to have such an impact when warrant card holders were previously deployed.

Similarly, we have been asking what more can be done to improve Examiner pay and conditions to aid recruitment and retention, so we also acknowledge the overtime payment as a step in the right direction. However, we would still query what work has been done (since the suggestion was made at the Transport Select Committee in December) to understand whether longer-term solutions, such as increasing Examiner pay, are at all possible, as we believe this is key in attracting new recruits and retaining existing, experienced people resources.

The acknowledgement that the consultation process on creating a fairer system for customers (including pupils and ADIs) needs to be expedited is also good to hear. However, we stand by our point in the letter that 25% of the 7 Point Plan consisted of plans to consult on plans.  And that in itself is evocative of the agency’s overall issue throughout the waiting times crisis – not radical enough actions being taken soon enough, and a reliance on slower-burn activities having the necessary impact.

The 7 Point Plan, designed to drive down test waiting times, was launched in December 2024. By the end of March 2025 (four months into the plan) waiting times had risen again. Our position is clear: the 7-Point Plan has not delivered sufficient results.

NASP has communicated to Ministers that we are happy to discuss the wider issue of test waiting times with them at any time. Indeed, we’re calling for a more collaborative approach, one where instructors are not just consulted, but properly listened to. After all, our members are the ones on the frontline, witnessing the impact of these delays on learners’ lives and livelihoods every single day – and feeling that impact in their own lives, and on their own livelihoods, as trainers too.

Today’s email follows on from our letter to Loveday Ryder sent on April 9th, to which we have still to receive a response, you can find a copy of that letter here

We in the association think this is a  step in the correct direction, however much more needs to be done to update the test booking system to allow people to be able to at least book a test, rather than the constant battle of the BOTs, Instructors advising pupils to cancel their test at the moment is just farcical, nobody is going to postpone and wait a further six months, they mainly ignore the instructor and take a chance in their own car, not an ideal way for members to run their business or promote road safety.