Warning over haulage driver shortage
A growing shortage of lorry drivers could bring Scotland’s economy to a halt. That’s the warning contained within a special report prepared by former MSP Chic Brodie for the Scottish Road Haulage Group. Mr Brodie warns: “Our world, your world, your customers’ worlds, your employees’ worlds could change, and change rapidly over the next few years. “No, it is not Brexit but something even more tangible and more immediate. “It concerns the serious impact that a loss of lorries, yes a loss or reduction of lorries, might have on our personal lives and on your business and organisations.” A report ( EKOS report) prepared for the Scottish Government two years ago indicated a shortage of 11,000 drivers. And figures reveal that only two per cent of goods vehicle drivers are under the age of 25, one per cent are women and three per from a BAME ( Black and Minority Ethnic) background. Mr Brodie added: “Truck transport is the commercial blood that flows through our personal, business and commercial arteries. “This is ‘ Project Reality’ not ‘ Project Fear’.”