I think they are exempt as they are not settling down in the country nor take benefits and all that .
Very much doubt any EU company needs to double pool of drives just because they can do more cabotage in the UK .
it would be interesting to know, as unless the EU citizen has settled or pre-settled status, or a visa, they are time limited… they no longer have right to remain Or freedom to move.
So unless there is a HGV exemption, they are no different to any other EU citizen.. 180 days in a year… which if they have to leave every 14 days suggests they dont… which means they cannot live here, and hence the transport company will need additional staff to serve this option.
Either way, its a tap the government can turn on / off and you know the RHA will be all over it.
What exactly are these opportunities for British folk in the EU? The 30 year old plumber undercut by a flood of Eastern Europeans must be happy in the knowledge they have right to retire in Marbella? The resident of an East Anglian or Midlands town where the large number of EU immigrants have changed the society of the town must be happy in the knowledge that well heeled UK professionals have exercised their right to colonise the Loire Valley and the Dordogne? These people did not want to be seeking opportunities away from their home towns.
What would be the point of a 'people-go-round' of Poles to the UK, with the displaced Brits then going to an 'opportunity' on the Continent? Where there were opportunities for Brits elsewhere in the EU you can be sure that they were taken up - problem is that opportunities were often not there for those to whom the free movement of EU nationals into the UK were a disbenefit.
Many UK people had no desire to use FoM (other than very peripherally for their holiday) and did not want to be adversely affected by EU nationals exercising their right to come here. This is not jealousy.
It doesn't matter who you want to blame for this state of affairs - FoM had an unintended consequence in the UK following the expansion of the EU with the Eastern European states.
Europe doesnt exist to serve Britain.
Europe opened up a continent for everyone to go everywhere, without restriction.. and millions have done so… it might be surprising to think, but millions of Europeans have moved between countries that doesnt include the UK and that the UK was never in their plans.
For some reason a subset of British society believed Britain exclusively opened up to Europe solely to let people come here and that there was a barrier for them to go the other way.
The only barrier was a mental one, (cyncics would say lazy or benefits driven), but ultimately it was motivation.
Even the most uneducateds in society may have been aware of auf-wiedersehn pet… there was nothing to stop anyone in the UK going to Europe, and had they done so, they would find themselves at advantage of a welcoming population and an advantage of language..
Its worth noting an Austrian working in Italy, would probably communicate in business in English with a Spanish colleague working in France, as English was a common business language.. and for both parties it needs 4 languages they need to learn.. a British person would find themselves available to communicate with one.
And fyi British plumbers, and builders in general were at very high demand in Europe, as they were considered much qualified than many locals, one of the reasons the 2004 Olympics even happened at all was the ability to contract in British labour willing to work for a deadline…
This was a uniquely British trait, the idea of if you pay more they will absorb risk to run faster is not common on the continent, and was used on high cost deadline driven projects across Europe including High Speed Rail, Stadiums, Tunneling, Hotel construction etc…
The oppourtunity was there, and many took it, of all traits and trades from the UK. but certainly some people have perhaps had it too easy for too long in this country. Brexit will bring around an appreciation for what they lost in the next few years once the money dries up.. most likely when those motivated souls take the UK jobs instead of European jobs and this starve the unmotivated ones who thought Brexit was a one way street for them to get more