At the onset of the pandemic, the DVLA sought to make paper driving licence services more resilient. The NAO reported that the DVLA decided to find additional office space in April 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic in Wales had just started.37 The DVLA has since invested in new buildings and additional staff, and made more services available online. In 2020, it made changes to the law to postpone driving licence renewals, but the Department told us that it decided on road safety grounds to limit this legal extension to licenses that expired over an 11-month period, leading to a spike in renewals in 2021.38 The Department told us that although the DVLA had contingency plans, they did not anticipate and plan for the combined impact of industrial action and the COVID-19 pandemic continuing into 2021.39 33 Qq 11, 14, 18–20 34 Q 20; C&AG’s Report, para 16 35 Q 23 36 Qq 22, 35–36, 41–42 37 Q 20; C&AG’s Report para 3.6 38 Qq 19–20, 25–31; C&AG’s Report, paras 22, 24–25 39 Qq 20–22 14 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA