New law proposed following fatal crash in Surrey

A new bill prompted by a fatal crash in Surrey has been introduced in Parliament which proposes restrictions for new driving licence holders.

These include a zero alcohol limit and controls over the number of young passengers allowed.

A coroner had called on the government to do more to protect young people on the roads following two deaths in a crash in Tongham in 2021.

Steve Mohabir, who lost his son in a crash on the A23 near Brighton in 2004, said: "I think it's a really good idea."

Mr Mohabir told BBC Radio Sussex it was a "good start" as young people "can be distracted by their friends" but warned "it's not just young drivers that speed".

He said he would be in favour of young people having a single passenger if travelling between work or college.

He also suggested young people could have black boxes fitted along with speed restrictions on their cars.

UK Government figures from 2022 suggested a fifth of all fatal or serious injury crashes involved a young driver.

Drivers aged 17 to 24 were also four times as likely to be killed or seriously injured as those over 25.

In April, a group of parents whose children had died in collisions involving young drivers called for ministers to bring in a graduated driving licence scheme.

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