HGV Driver Crisis: "Nobody wants to come here for just three months"

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A Romanian HGV driver working in Dorset has told BBC Radio Solent that short term visas will not solve the UK’s lorry driver crisis. It's estimated that the UK needs about 100,000 HGV drivers. Existing shortages have been made worse by the pandemic, tax changes and Brexit - also, an ageing workforce, low wages and poor working conditions. 27 year old Bogdan Ciocan told BBC Radio Solent that even making the job more attractive, may not convince EU drivers to return to the UK on short term contracts. Originally from Romania, Bogdan is an HGV store delivery driver - he's been doing the job for the past 6 years and lives in Salisbury. BBC Radio Solent reporter Laurence Herdman caught up with him on the outskirts of Dorchester close to the Puddletown bypass to gauge the health of the HGV industry from somebody working on the front line.