Lockdown: Driving instructors call for restart clarity

With hairdressers set to reopen in Wales, driving instructors have questioned why they cannot start lessons once again.

Some have large backlogs of learners waiting for tests and have lost thousands of pounds already.

At Friday's Welsh Government briefing, First Minister Mark Drakeford said despite pleas "it's not a safe thing for us to be able to resume".

"It's inevitably a confined space, two people are in it together," he added.

"They're in it not just for five minutes, but they're in it for the length of a whole driving lesson.

"Things are not at this moment good enough for us to be able to say that they can resume."

Sarah Allen, who gives lessons in Swansea and Neath, said the fact hairdressers could restart from Monday and instructors could not, had upset many in her trade.

"I don't get how a hairdresser is more socially distanced? We don't get close," she said.

"They can be right in their face cutting a fringe. In the car, that's their space, we don't encroach."

Ms Allen said there was concern among some of her learners that their theory test pass would expire, as driving tests are postponed.

"I have kids phoning me crying," she said.

"They've gone for jobs thinking they will have their test in a few weeks, but haven't got the job, because they can't drive."

Neil Thomas, who works in Vale of Glamorgan and Cardiff, has turned down 400 people asking for lessons since last August.

He has not qualified for financial support either, as he had only worked as an instructor since 2019.

"I see taxis with three people in the car at one time and wonder why we can't work," he added.

"We would take all the measures, such as wearing masks."

Haydn Balch, from Swansea, questioned how lessons were different in terms of "close contact" to having your hair cut.

He accused the first minister of performing a u-turn on a pledge to give instructors a date to aim for, and highlighted how a provisional date of 12 April had been given in England.

"A lot were hoping to go back this week and are suffering financial hardship. It is getting beyond," he said.

Mr Balch has worked for about four months since last March's first lockdown.

"The other worry is that learners will turn to what we call the school of mum and dad. They will take them out for lessons, and they could take their test just on the back of that," he added.

"We will end up with a generation of bad drivers."

Mr Balch believed he had lost about £18,000 in revenue and received about £8,000 in grants.

Wrexham-based Nigel Richards said his phone had been "on fire" after he previously told learners he thought they would be returning at the same time as hairdressers.

"It's a bit disappointing there is no start date and there's nothing confirmed," he said.

"I've been telling pupils that we are in the same class as hairdressers.

"I thought by taking all the precautions we could - windows open and wearing masks - we could restart."

Mr Richards has 10 cars in his company, giving about 400 lessons a week and he said he dreaded looking in his diary at the backlog of drivers who wanted lessons.