2 2GN The Sunday Times April 24, 2022NEWS
FIND US ONruption caused by delays at the DVLA will
have lasted for more than 2½ years since
the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
The agency, whose headquarters are in
Swansea, has come under heavy criti-
cism for allowing more staff to work at
home than on site as recently as January.
Lennard wrote: “We are on track to
return to normal turnaround times on
drivers’ paper applications by the end of
May and drivers’ medical applications by
the end of September.” She said that most
of the 207,096 who had been waiting
longer than ten weeks are medical cases.
The DVLA’s delays have caused disrup-
tion to many people’s lives. John Lawless,
77, and his wife Maggie, of Hythe, Hamp-
shire, were planning to tour Europe in
their new motorhome, which they
bought for £100,000. But their plans
were thrown into limbo in August 2021, a
few weeks after he applied for the
renewal of his licence, when he was
tested for an irregular heartbeat.
Although he swiftly obtained four
medical reports stating that he was fit to
drive, including one from the most senior
heart consultant at Southampton Gen-
eral Hospital, he had to chase up the
DVLA with more than 230 phone calls
over the next eight months.
He was eventually told on Monday that
his licence would be renewed, but the
news came too late for the couple, whohad given up hope and sold their motor-
home at an £18,000 loss.
An in-house team of 46 doctors and
nurses in the DVLA’s drivers medical
department are responsible for assessing
the applications, but they rely heavily on
GPs and other NHS staff to check patient
records. Tensions between doctors and
the DVLA risk creating fresh delays. Dr
Peter Holden, chairman of the British
Medical Association (BMA) professional
fees committee, said that patient care
was suffering because doctors were hav-
ing to divert resources “to do the
bureaucracy for the DVLA”.
He said: “The average one of these
cases may well take a doctor 30 to 40
minutes, and their secretary 20 minutes,
and a doctor could see four or five
patients in that time. How do you want to
use my time? I’m sure it is not filling in
papers for the DVLA. It is taking time and
resource away from the care of patients.”
GPs are typically paid £42 to help the
DVLA with each application
The DVLA said it aimed to make deci-
sions as quickly as possible but complex
cases would take longer. It added that it
was consulting on allowing healthcare
professionals other than doctors to com-
plete DVLA applications: “This forms
part of a wider approach to improve and
speed up medical licensing processes.”
@NicholasHellenDVLA medical delays to
drag on until autumn
The backlog of more
than 200,000 applicants
waiting to learn whether
they can still drive will
last for several monthsNicholas Hellen Transport EditorLOTTERY7, 10, 24, 31, 48, 56
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11.35am Lord Ricketts, the former
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This week in The Sunday Times
Also on our phone app, on tablet
and online at thesundaytimes.co.uk
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency
(DVLA) has admitted that there will be no
return to normal service for drivers with
medical conditions before the end of Sep-
tember. More than 200,000 applicants
have waited longer than 10 weeks to find
out whether they can continue driving.
People suffering from medical condi-
tions or disabilities that could affect their
ability to drive safely must tell the DVLA if
they develop a condition for the first
time, or if it has become worse since they
obtained their licence. The list includes
diabetes or taking insulin, heart condi-
tions, epilepsy, strokes, fainting and
sleep apnoea.
In a letter to Huw Merriman, the chair-
man of the Commons transport select
committee, Julie Lennard, chief execu-
tive of the DVLA, also warned that it
would take until the end of May to return
to normal turnaround times on drivers’
paper applications. It means that the dis-SPRUCE UP
FOR SPRING
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Ian Cowie on
why investing
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troubled timesMANE
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the 19 biggest
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camera blowing his nose on a fish skin by teacher
Vallteri Mulkahainen in Martinselkonen, FinlandGIVE IT A GOOD BALOO
VALTTERI MULKAHAINEN/ CATERS NEWSKwarteng warns
overcharging
energy suppliers
Kwasi Kwarteng has urged the
energy watchdog to crack
down on suppliers that are
overcharging customers in
the cost-of-living crisis.
The business secretary
wrote to the head of Ofgem,
the energy regulator, on
Friday after being told of
“troubling reports” of energy
suppliers increasing their
customers’ direct debit
payments beyond the level
required following the price
cap rise. It was increased to
just under £2,000 per
household at the beginning of
April, a 54 per cent increase.
Describing the alleged
actions as “completely
unacceptable behaviour”,
Kwarteng said the watchdog
should “not hesitate to take
swift action to enforce
compliance, including
substantial fines”.
He said: “Now more than
ever we need to closely
scrutinise and hold energy
companies to a high standard
that the public rightly expect.
“The people who are
suffering most as a result of
high prices are customers,
not energy suppliers.”
Ofgem had earlier said it
had seen evidence suggestingthat suppliers were allowing
customer service “to
deteriorate”.
Following the price cap
rise, suppliers have
significantly increased the
amount collected from
customers who pay by direct
debit. Ofgem said it had been
alerted by consumer groups
and individuals to “bad
practices” by some suppliers,
including increasing
payments by “more than is
necessary” and encouraging
customers to sign up to new
pricing deals that “may not be
in their best interest”.
With Ofgem expected to let
the price cap rise to more
than £2,600 in October,
No 10 has ordered all
departments to draw up new
measures to alleviate a
further squeeze on incomes.
Kwarteng’s department is
understood to have proposed
doubling the energy rebate
due to be handed to
28 million households in
October from £200 to £400.
Officials are also said to be
looking at doubling the warm
homes discount to £300,
which is provided to three
million vulnerable
households.
British Gas bids for Bulb,
BusinessHarry Yorke and
Caroline WheelerMinisters
face claims
of sexual
misconductthe wake of the “Pestminster”
scandal and the #MeToo
movement. Charlie Elphicke
and Stephen Crabb were
among MPs who faced
allegations of sexual
impropriety.
Elphicke was jailed for twoyears after being convicted of
three charges of sexual
assault. Two of the cases
involved a parliamentary
worker.
Dave Penman, the general
secretary of the FDA union,
which represents civil
servants, said: “While
some of the procedures for
raising complaints have
improved, the fundamental
balance of power between
MPs and the staff they
employ has not.
“Where that exists it will
inevitably be exploited,
either by those who do
not have the skills to managestaff effectively, or those
with more malevolent
intent.
“That means that it’s time
to look again at the
employment relationship
between MPs and the staff
who support them.”
Jess Phillips, Labour’s
shadow minister for domestic
violence and safeguarding,
described the number
of MPs facing allegations of
sexual misconduct
“harrowing” and called on
the Speaker to convene a
panel of MPs and experts to
look at the problem again.
“There continues to be aserious power imbalance in
Westminster,” she said.
Caroline Nokes, the
Conservative MP who chairs
the women and equalities
committee, said: “I have long
been concerned that the ICGS
would not deliver all that we
wanted it to and that there is
still a pervasive culture of
misogyny, harassment and
unacceptable sexual
behaviour.”
A government spokesman
said: “We take all allegations
of this nature incredibly
seriously and would
encourage anyone with any
allegations to come forward.”→Continued from page 1Ukraine pleas
for weapons
were rejected
for yearsambassador to London,
thinks the ban was based on
the flawed view that Ukraine
was incapable of defending
itself against Russia.
Last year the government
signed a deal to help Ukraine
to rebuild its navy, severely
weakened by Russia’s seizure
of the Crimean naval base of
Sevastopol in 2014. However,
the warships were not built in
time for the invasion.
Last night President
Zelensky called again for a
meeting with Putin but said
he would pull out of any
peace negotiations if Russia
killed the 2,000 Ukrainiansoldiers holding out in
Mariupol. Asked about
military aid, he said Ukraine
wanted “more than we’re
being given, but we’re
satisfied”. He said the biggest
military aid was coming from
the US and Britain.
Since January Britain has
been increasingly supplying
weapons. So far the US had
pledged £2.5 billion worth
and Britain £450 million.
France and Germany had also
promised significant
amounts. Thousands of
British light anti-tank
weapons, a shoulder-
launched missile system that
has proved hugely successful,
have been sent out.
Last week, Johnson said
Britain was considering
sending Challenger 2 tanks to
Poland so that it could
transfer its own Soviet-era
T-72s to Ukraine.
Investigation, pages 18-
Editorial, page 24→Continued from page 1Banca do Antfer
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