New drivers need to gain experience

I PASSED my driving test in 1971. In the weeks that followed I had to learn parallel parking, nightdriving and motorwaydriving, none of which were then included in the test but which suddenly I was deemed fully competent to do.

It is much belated sanity to allow learners on motorways provided they are accompanied by a government-approved instructor and driving a dual-control car.

Then there was the problem of driving in central London when I had passed in the comparatively tiny Chichester, after learning in rural Surrey. My heart used to hammer as other drivers swapped lanes round me, expecting me to do the same as there was nothing to indicate I was new to driving.

I have believed ever since that there is a strong case for newly qualified drivers to be made to display warning plates for six months so that other drivers can exercise both extra caution and extra understanding.

As the law currently stands, P plates are not compulsory and many seasoned drivers would not have a clue what they mean. How odd in a country so obsessed with health and safety. PRESIDENT TRUMP may have been a teeny bit undiplomatic towards the lunatic in North Korea but he had already warned Xi Jinping as long ago as April that if China did not deal with the situation then America would, since when China has taken no effective action.

It is a simple fact of life that the world cannot wait for Kim Jong-un to get a nuclear weapon capable of hitting the greatest superpower. He must be stopped now and if China won’t take the responsibility then Trump must. End of.