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Road Safety

I personally have not had a discussion with our right hon. Friend. However, the consultation document has been cleared across government. It is a Government consultation document, so the Department would have been cited. Certainly the Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, West (Ruth Kelly) meets our right hon. Friend the Justice Secretary on at least a weekly basis in Cabinet and they have direct discussions on matters of mutual interest. I know that at departmental level, official level, and at a level above my pay grade, such meetings are taking place, but I cannot say that I personally have met the Secretary of State for Justice. To return to the point made by the hon. Member for Cheadle, who asked about testing in all conditions, we are considering how wider knowledge and skills can be tested, not just in the practical road test but in a modern computer-based test as well. We cannot run all driving tests at night or wait for rain and snow. However, any question about breaking up the tests is a matter for consultation. The hon. Gentleman also asked about research on the scope and status of the proposed workbook. Young people tell us that they welcome the means to structure their learning up to and after the test. That is how they learn other vocational skills, so we are considering how best to deal with that. My hon. Friend the Member for North-West Leicestershire (David Taylor) and the hon. Member for Cheadle both asked about Pass Plus. We recognise the need to review and reform Pass Plus, as the scheme does not demonstrate any benefit to road safety. There were some initial gains, but insurance companies are cooling towards it, because it does not provide the benefits that they expected. With regard to reduced premiums for young drivers, the insurance companies say that they are interested in the ““Learning to Drive”” consultation paper because if it produces safer drivers, it will allow them to reduce premiums, which are high because they have to pay out so much money as a result of crashes. That is led by the evidence to a certain extent, but insurers are fully involved and interested in the consultation. The hon. Member for Scarborough and Whitby raised the issue of motorcyclists. I may be wrong, but, from memory, I think that 599 were killed in 2006, and 588 in 2007. We have taken some very positive steps. We set up a national advisory board, which meets on a quarterly basis. Last month, we launched a new safety rating for helmets, which will prevent about 50 deaths a year. We advise motorists on the safest helmet for their particular needs. I heard what the hon. Gentleman says about his concern about travel distances, and we will watch that. He acknowledges that what we are trying to do in the more rigorous and robust tests is to make motorcyclists safer, just as we are doing for all drivers. However, I acknowledge that most motorcyclists are victims of road crashes, not the cause. In conclusion, I return to the main issue. Hon. Members have said that we should single out young male drivers for special attention. That is not what the restrictions will do; they will restrict all young drivers, including young women. I have stressed that we are still consulting on the matter and we have outlined our recommendations. However, we are listening. This is a life-and-death issue, and I can assure hon. Members that we will continue to work across the House, within the Department and with all the agencies as hard as possible to push the horrendous figures down further. I will take the opportunity to say that we are about to consult on our post-2010 road safety strategy and would welcome any contribution from right hon. and hon. Members.