§ Mr. RUPERT GUINNESSasked the President of the Local Government Board whether he is aware that under the present system licences to drive motor vehicles are granted to persons without proof of fitness to drive, and that the United Kingdom is the only country where such a system obtains; and, if so, what steps he proposes to take, by legislation or otherwise, with a view to requiring, in the interests of the safety of the public, that before a licence is granted a certificate be forthcoming from a suitable authority that the fitness of the applicant to drive has been tested?
§ Mr. BURNSI am aware that in some foreign countries a test of capacity to drive a motor car is required before a driving licence is given, and that no such test is required in this country. This subject was carefully considered by the Royal Commission on Motor Cars, and I would refer the hon. Member to paragraphs 92 to 95 of their Report. The conclusion at which they arrived was that it was not desirable or necessary for the safety of the public to establish a national system of examination of drivers before licences are given to them. They expressed the opinion that accidents with motor cars are rarely traceable to incompetence to drive, while they are not infrequently associated with undue confidence or occasional recklessness on the part of skilled drivers. I see no reason at present to dissent from the conclusion of the Commissioners.