Cumbria’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (Commissioner), David Allen, is praising Northern Ireland for their implementation of Graduated Drivers Licences (GDLs).
The GDLs will ensure a minimum learning period of six months and complete 14 training modules before being allowed to sit their test. There will be a restriction on new drivers banning them from carrying more than one passenger between the ages of 14 -20 between 11pm and 6am for the first six months after passing. However, this will not apply to immediate family members or if there is someone above the age of 21 who has held a drivers licence for at least six years sitting in the front seat. New drivers will have to display an ‘R’ plate on their vehicles for 24 months after passing.
The system will be introduced in October 2026 and will focus on new drivers between the ages of 17 and 23.
Commissioner David Allen said: “I fully support the introduction of Graduated Drivers Licences and I hope that the rest of the UK follows the example set by Northern Ireland.
“Passing your driver’s test is an exciting rite of passage. It’s also, in our rural county, something that is a necessity. However, getting behind the wheel of a car without an experienced driver is a massive responsibility.
“The careful introduction of graduated driver’s licences in England and Wales would reduce fatal collisions across the country – as evidenced in countries that have already adopted the scheme – and I’m sure we’ll see the same positive results in Northern Ireland.
“Cumbria’s very own Sharron Huddleston campaigns strongly for GDLs in the UK after her daughter, Caitlin, tragically lost her life in 2017 in a car crash at 18 years old. She was a passenger in a car driven by her friend, who also lost her life, who had passed her driving test four months previously after losing control of the car on a bend in a wet, rural road. I fully support Sharron in her efforts to implement GDLs.
“This isn’t about stripping our young people of their freedom – it’s about ensuring their safety until they have more experience driving.
“I will continue to put my support behind those campaigning for GDLs to be introduced in the UK and rally the Government to do so. It’s vital that we protect our most vulnerable and I believe that Graduated Drivers Licences are a step towards this.
“Even if it saves one life- it is absolutely worth it.”