Brexit – impact on Drivers’ Hours Rules and Driver CPC Regulations ?
Amidst the post-EU Referendum chaos and confusion of the past few days, transport employment industry experts have delivered a clear message about any impact of Brexit on Drivers’ Hours and Driver CPC regulations – no change likely (1).
Leaving The EU – What Changes To EU Transport Regulations ?
Until the UK formally leaves the EU, all current EU transport legislation would remain the same. To leave the EU, the UK would have to invoke Article 50, a process not expected to be put into play until a new Conservative leader is elected in the autumn and which will then involve an EU exit period of 2 years.
After any withdrawal from the EU, the UK parliament would have to decide whether to replace existing transport laws derived from the EU or to retain them. In theory therefore, if Drivers’ Hours and Driver CPC rules were to change as a result of the UK leaving the EU, nothing would in fact happen until late 2018 at the earliest (just 9 months from the deadline of the next CPC 5-year cycle) (2).
However, many transport employment industry experts such as the RTITB (Road Transport Industry Training Board) are confident that an immediate large-scale repeal of EU transport employment laws is highly unlikely and that there will be no change to current Drivers’ Hours Rules and Driver CPC regulations if the UK does leave the EU
Significantly many of the rules currently governing transport in the EU derive from long-standing regulatory structures and agreements which predate the UK’s membership of the EU, both domestically and in Europe (3)
IMPACT OF BREXIT ON DRIVERS’ HOURS RULES (and European Working Time Directive*)
Currently EU Drivers’ Hours Rules (EC561/2006 , EC651/2014) strictly control the hours a driver can drive in the UK and EU. They apply to both goods and passenger vehicles and are designed to maintain safety standards and deal with maximum driving times, breaks and minimum rest periods. The European Working Time Directive works in conjunction with the EU Drivers Hours Rules and limits the amount of time worked rather than just the time spent driving (4).
Transport industry experts have stated post-referendum that there will likely be no change to EU Drivers’ Rules if the UK does leave the EU as;
- The UK Transport Act 1968 incorporates these (EU) drivers’ hours rules into the regulatory requirements currently enforced within the UK and these are likely to continue to apply to both goods and passenger vehicle operations and will not be repealed simply by exiting the EU(5)
- The UK is also still a signatory of the AETR (European Agreement Concerning the Work of Crews Engaged in International Road Transport), the set of Drivers’ rules which AETR and EEA (European Economic Area) countries (i.e. non-EU countries) have adopted. These rules are the same as EU Drivers’ Hours Regulations – industry experts say “it is inconceivable that there will be any change here – AETR and EAA countries apply these rules despite not being Member (of the EU) States – again, there will be no appetite to remove rules that enhance safety” (6)
Read more about current EU Drivers’ Hours Rules European Working Time Directive
IMPACT OF BREXIT ON DRIVER CPC
As with EU Drivers’ Hours Rules, industry experts say Driver CPC will also likely remain in place as it is also covered by AETR rules– “The RTITB’s advice to all goods vehicle operators is very simple – it is business as usual as far as Driver CPC is concerned. RTITB continues to strongly recommend operators ensure their drivers complete 7 hours’ Periodic Training each year and you plan to meet the next compliance deadline of September 2019 exactly as you would have on 22nd June 2016″ (7)
*Note: The Working Time Directive governs average working hours, rest periods and annual leave. Industry experts say the 1998 Working Time Regulations, which implemented the Directive into UK law are unlikely to be scrapped in their entirety, although businesses may call for changes to the maximum 48-hour working week, a review of “on-call” time and some coherence in the calculation of holiday pay (8).
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Sources
(1) http://rtitb.info/blog/nothing-changes- post-brexit/
(2) http://www.hsssearch.co.uk/page_733989.aspNo change’ for Driver CPC post BREXIT
(3/4, 5) http://www.backhousejones.co.uk/effects-of-brexit-on-the-road-transport-industry/
(7) http://www.shdlogistics.com/news/brexit-rtitb-says-no-impact-on-driver-cpc
(8) http://www.onrec.com/news/news-archive/brexit-what-would-happen-to-uk-employment-law
