It is a tragic waste of human potential that so many young people put themselves at risk on the roads and pay the ultimate price for their recklessness. According to the road safety group BRAKE, drivers aged under 25 make up only ten per cent of the driving population yet account for 25 per cent of all road deaths.

One of the latest names to add to this tragic toll in West Yorkshire is that of 21-year-old Thomas Ainley, of Liversedge, who died while racing against one of his colleagues as they drove home from work. The Coroner yesterday heard that Mr Ainley's car was overtaking his friend's, which was in turn overtaking another car unconnected with them, when it hit a wall at high speed before going on to collide with a telegraph pole.

It will be hard for most drivers, who try to proceed safely and within the law, to understand what possessed these two young men to embark on a race. Unfortunately young drivers can be aggressively competitive and oblivious to the dangers they create for themselves and others because of their speed and inexperience.

The tragedy of Thomas Ainley is yet another statistic to underline the need for something to be done to protect young drivers and other road users from the temptation to speed.

The idea from SCARD (Support and Care After Road Death or Injury) of restricting newly-qualified drivers to low-power cars until they have proved themselves to be sufficiently responsible is an interesting one. It might be complicated to administer but is certainly worth exploring.