HC Deb 20 June 1973 vol 858 cc661-2
9. Mr. Marten

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what view the Government has recently expressed to the Common Market authorities on their proposal to raise the age for obtaining driving licences from 17 to 18 years.

Mr. Peyton

None, Sir, as I have not yet had any occasion to do so.

Mr. Marten

As the Government have now had nearly nine months to consider the matter, will my right hon. Friend be good enough to tell the House to what conclusions the Government have come on the question whether the age at which driving licences are issued should be raised from 17 to 18?

Mr. Peyton

The Commission's proposals have been in orbit for only a comparatively short time. The proposals have not yet come before the Council of Ministers. I have not felt called upon to express an opinion. For myself, I can only say that I view a large part of the contents of the proposals with very great reservations.

Mr. Mulley

The House will show great interest in the right hon. Gentleman's remarks. Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the proposals are a directive of the Commission and were circulated as long ago as last October or November? It may be that the Government's present policy is to wait until the last minute, when matters get to the Council of Ministers, but many people would like to know the Government's attitude to the odd collection of proposals contained in the directive.

Mr. Peyton

I have contented myself so far by politely saying that I have a great many reservations about the contents of the proposals that have emanated from the Commission. Incidentally, it is not a directive. The matter has not yet been considered by the Council of Ministers. As I have said, I think that a number of the proposals are things that I should not like at all.

Mr. Adam Butler

I recognise that the risks of accidents are greater with a heavier traffic flow and that the best way to deal with this question is through more stringent tests and teaching methods, but will my right hon. Friend resist strongly the suggestion that the licence age should be raised from 17?

Mr. Peyton

As I have said, I have many reservations on these proposals. I see no call to alter the driving age.

Sir G. de Freitas

Will the right hon. Gentleman remind other Ministers that even in a federal country like the United States these matters are left to the individual States? Surely the Commission has more to do than fussing around with proposals like this.

Mr. Peyton

As the right hon. Gentleman knows, I am not responsible for the proposals that emanate from the Commission. What I am responsible for is the response which Her Majesty's Government make to them—and these present proposals are, I think, not to be wholly welcomed.