Road Safety Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 116:"Page 34, line 33, at end insert—" ““(e)   after paragraph (c) insert— ““(ca)   for a person submitting himself for a test to provide evidence of professional driving training received and the minimum duration of such training””.”” The noble Earl said: This amendment is rather simpler. Before discussing it I should state that I have not recently been briefed on it by any organisation involved in driver training; it is entirely my own idea. While paid driving instructors must be registered and qualified, there is no requirement to use them. The problem is that it is quite possible to pass the test without having had any professional instruction. A competent driving instructor will try to ensure that his student is not only well trained but also comprehensively trained; that is to say, that he will have covered a whole range of matters that may or may not come up in the driving test. There is another problem. Most drivers, including myself, overestimate their driving skills, but young, male novice drivers are the worst. A new problem is arising whereby candidates fail the driving test but brag about their capabilities and refuse to acknowledge their failure and commence driving unaccompanied as if they had passed the test. If these characters had received some professional instruction, they would be more likely to realise their limitations before they took the test. They would then take a more realistic view of their chances of passing it and might modulate their bragging accordingly. They might not leave themselves with no way out if they fail the test. Even if they carried on driving without trying to pass a test, at least they would have had some proper training. I beg to move.