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Department for Transport: Consultation on proposed reforms to Driver Certificate of Professional Competence

The Department for Transport has today (2 March 2023) launched a consultation about proposed reforms to the Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (DCPC) qualification.

This consultation follows the review into DCPC which took place between November 2021 and January 2022 in response to acute driver shortages in the road haulage and passenger transport industries.

They are seeking views on options for how the DCPC qualification is maintained and, in the case of returning drivers, regained, taking advantage of the greater autonomy to regulate following EU-exit.

Potential measures being considered include:

• reducing minimum course lengths to enhance flexibility of delivering periodic training,
• the option of new periodic test as an alternative to periodic training, which will be delivered by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA),
• an accelerated route for former drivers to return to the sector more easily.

If implemented, reforms will establish a National DCPC for use in Great Britain and possibly Northern Ireland should Northern Ireland ministers agree (as DCPC is a devolved matter).

The existing regime, International DCPC, will remain for travel to, from or within the EU, including the Republic of Ireland, and will continue to be recognised for journeys within the UK.

They would like to emphasise that the proposals are all subject to consultation and no final decisions have been made on which reforms may be taken forward. Proposals on which we are consulting will require amendments to legislation.

You can read and respond to the consultation on GOV.UK as well as read through the DCPC review report.

The closing date for the consultation is 11:45pm on Thursday 27 April.

Find out more at a free webinar

To find out more about the proposed changes and how they might affect you the Department for Transport (DfT) is holding a free webinar on Tuesday 14 March from 6pm - 7pm.

The webinar is an opportunity for a DfT representative to talk you through the proposals. There will also be a question and answer session.

If you would like to ask a question, please send them to dcpc.review@dft.gov.uk before 5pm on 7 March with the subject 'DCPC webinar trainer, operator and driver'.

Book your free place on the webinar here.

If you can’t make this session we will share a recording after the event so you can watch the presentation.