HC Deb 28 January 2004 vol 417 c355W
Mr. Hoyle

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the introduction of the new Advanced Driving Instructor part 1 examination; and what skills the examination will assess which are not covered by existing tests. [150015]

Mr. Jamieson

The driving instructor registration scheme involves periodic re-assessment of competence. We intend to use modern technology to assess instructor standards in an effective and efficient manner, as part of their supervision arrangements.

The new computer-based assessment will comprise a multiple-choice question test of knowledge and understanding of driving theory and instruction, plus a moving-image hazard perception test. The knowledge and understanding test draws on a bank of over 900 questions and is more comprehensive than when most instructors qualified.

Hazard perception testing has been a key part of the qualification process for learner car drivers, lorry drivers, bus drivers, motor cyclists, potential instructors and driving examiners since November 2002. Extending it to driving instructors who have not been assessed in this key skill will help their standards maintenance and professionalism and result in a driving instructor profession better placed to deliver high-quality instruction.

We want to ensure that when the public, often young people, buy driving lessons they can have confidence that the instructor they choose will have kept up to date with developments in the learning-to-drive syllabus and be familiar with how the hazard perception test works.