Promise of seven-week driving test wait in Great Britain ‘unlikely to happen until 2027’

The NAO report said a large backlog of driving tests had built up during the pandemic but that the DVSA had struggled to recognise the level of demand. Photograph: macana/Alamy

Plans to cut the wait for a driving test to seven weeks by the end of the year will not be achieved until November 2027, an audit report has found.

Only a net 83 more driving test examiners have been hired despite 19 recruitment campaigns since 2021, with the average wait for a practical test now at 22 weeks across Great Britain, according to the National Audit Office (NAO).