Left Turning Vehicles and Highway Code

That has always been my position. While a lot can be done to make lorries safer that does not excuse the driver who doesn't pay attention to the road all around them.
There has been a great deal of misleading publicity around the myth of blind spots. Not least the appalling, misleading video and poster put out by TfL which falsely suggests that drivers cannot see cyclists along the left side of a lorry.
Many people mis-interpret the marked area around the front and side of lorries used in police hgv 'changing places' events. That area isn that which the driver must be able to see through class V and VI overhead mirrors. He should be checking this area when stationary and before moving off. Once the lorry is moving these areas are much harder to see.
I suspect there have been fewer prosecutions of careless drivers in recent years as the police investigations have been led by detectives who do not understand driving and traffic law instead of the uniformed police who were experts.

I have to say that when I recently tried one of the police-sponsored sit-in-a-lorry things then I was quite surprised just how much coverage there was with mirrors these days. There seemed to be one very specific blind spot (though it was unfortunately in a place cyclists often seem to end up in at junctions) but that was about it - not that I'd place myself left of a lorry anyway.

I noticed that as usual they used an articulated job for the demonstration but I can't help thinking this is a bit misleading as the poorly regulated and driven fixed wheel base 'waste management' lorries used at building sites are the real problem. Their drivers kill far more cyclists as I understand it...come to think of it one of them nearly took me out as a pedestrian a while back by cutting a corner too sharply.