HC Deb 18 December 1957 vol 580 cc406-7
48. Mr. Gresham Cooke

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation when he intends to make regulations to bring into effect Section 18 of the Road Traffic Act, 1956, so as to limit the number of provisional licences that a learner driver may hold without submitting to a test.

The Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation (Mr. Harold Watkinson)

Section 18 (2) of the Act, which extends the period of duration of a provisional licence from three to six months, will be brought into force on 1st March, 1958; I am in consultation with interested bodies in regard to the fee to be charged for the new licence.

I am considering, in the light of the situation in regard to driving tests, when to introduce the provisions of Section 18 (1).

Mr. Gresham Cooke

Has my right hon. Friend noticed the ease the other day in which a judge described as very unsatisfactory the fact that a defendant involved in an accident had had several provisional licences over several years; and will he, in the interests of road safety, bring in this provision as soon as possible to cut down the period during which provisional licences can be given?

Mr. Watkinson

I think that my hon. Friend will know that Section 18 (I) of the Act, which I intend to bring into force, does meet that case to some extent.

Mr. Rankin

Could the Minister say whether, when driving licences are being issued, any attempt is made to assess the intelligence quotient of recipients?

Mr. Watkinson

The Question deals with provisional licences, not driving licences.