The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has confirmed that political, religious or other symbolic displays must be removed from vehicles before they are used for driving tests, following concerns raised by UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI).
UKLFI wrote to the DVSA and the Department for Transport after being informed that cars displaying Palestinian flags, “Free Palestine” stickers and other pro-Palestinian symbols had regularly been presented for driving tests at a test centre in East London.
UKLFI had been informed that after 7 October 2023, cars displaying Palestinian flags and symbols were frequently seen at the centre. These included keffiyehs covering car seats and Palestinian flag stickers on number plates.
A driving examiner told UKLFI that the proliferation of such displays had made him feel “intimidated and scared”.
UKLFI argued that allowing vehicles carrying political displays to be used for official driving examinations risked breaching the Civil Service requirement of impartiality and raised concerns under the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty. It called on the DVSA to make clear to driving instructors and learner drivers that political adornments were not permitted during tests and to require their removal before a test began.
The DVSA has confirmed that examiners had been instructed to ask candidates or approved driving instructors to remove any flag or symbolic item from a vehicle. If they refused, the driving test would not proceed.
The DVSA spokesperson explained: “This policy requires that driving tests remain neutral and free from any display that could be interpreted as political, religious or otherwise symbolic. This ensures fairness to all as part of the driving test process.”
The agency confirmed that on one occasion a vehicle arrived for a test with an unsuitable sticker on its front number plate. The examiner identified that the plate was non-compliant and told the driving instructor that the test could not proceed unless the sticker was removed. It was removed and the test then went ahead.
In another case, a driving instructor complained after being asked to remove a keffiyeh from a vehicle. The DVSA said that the examiner had acted correctly and in accordance with its impartiality policy. The keffiyeh was removed and the test proceeded.
The DVSA said: “The position of the personnel at any driving test centre is one of impartiality, and only of providing the driving test service. Where vehicles may have been displaying flags, stickers or symbols that do not comply with policy, action has been taken to ensure that these are either removed, or the test does not go ahead. This policy continues to be enforced across all driving test centres. All driving examiners are reminded to engage professionally with Authorised Driving Instructors and customers when requesting the removal of such items.”
A spokesperson for UKLFI, said:
“We welcome the DVSA’s confirmation that driving tests must remain politically neutral and that flags, stickers and other symbolic items must be removed before a test can proceed.
“Driving examiners and members of the public should not be placed in a position where they are confronted with political campaigning while taking part in an official government service.
“The DVSA’s clarification is particularly important for Jewish and Israeli staff and customers, who should be able to attend driving test centres without feeling intimidated or subjected to political messages relating to the Israel-Gaza conflict.
“We are pleased that the DVSA has confirmed that this policy applies across all driving test centres and that tests should not proceed where political or other symbolic displays are not removed.”