Driving test delays 'adding to' instructor shortage

Efforts to clear the backlog of learner drivers waiting to sit their practical test are "hampering" the recruitment of new instructors.

The UK government has announced steps aimed at making thousands of additional tests available every month.

But trainee instructors have said delays in booking their own exams, "astronomical" costs and a "convoluted" testing process are deterring people from the industry.

The number of instructors has fallen by more than 6,000 between April 2011 and April 2024, according to Department of Transport figures, and instructors fear the system is at risk of "grinding to a halt".