Paul Arthurton Owner, Paul Arthurton Transport, Norfolk Paul Arthurton is
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at pains to stress that he is not anti training. But he struggles to see how the Driver CPC is going to raise the quality benchmark across the industry.
“We have done the first batch of seven hours. But I was not impressed with the quality of the course.
“About three times a week, I get called by training firms offering their services. They are all JAUPT-approved, but when I ask them about their experience of the industry, many of them have never even run a lorry before.
“There are some very inexperienced people doing the training. The trouble is, when you criticise it, you are accused of being against training. I’m not, but what I am saying is, if we’re going to do this, let’s do it properly. For a start, it should be more targeted. For instance, I’ve got a driver who is 63 and has been doing the job for 45 years. There’s no reason why he should have to do this. On the other hand, I have another young driver who is 21, so I will make him do it.” Arthurton also makes a point highlighted by other panel members: the vetting of foreign drivers. “I wonder whether, from 2014, all foreign drivers will be asked to produce their CPC? Because if they cannot, they should be banned.”