Yesterday Joshua (16) passed his tractor test. He also learned from the news that he is likely to have to wait until he is 18 before he can drive a car on the road.

Josh (like his father) is one of those natural drivers, and he has been able to drive since he could reach the pedals and see over the steering wheel simultaneously - in other words for half his young life. Even at 8 he never made 'kangaroo' starts, or stalled, or crunched the gears. Josh is a very lucky boy: he has a small, off road motorbike and a one third share of a quad-bike. He also has the choice of my old car and a beautifully restored landrover waiting for him as soon as on-road driving is legal for him.

Josh won't be driving illegally, but how many boys (and girls?) will when they find themselves deprived of the right to learn to drive a year beyond what they expected?

He won't become an on-road motorcyclist - or only over his mother's dead body - but how many young people will become motorcyclists? And how many, who would have lived to a ripe old age as car drivers, will die riding those motorbikes?

Josh may well cause other drivers a good deal of frustration driving his slow tractor on the road, and these drivers may make foolish overtaking manoeuvres and have accidents as a result.

Surely there is a better way of improving driving other than postponing driving age for a year?

If it were up to me, I would have road safety as a school subject culminating in all sixteen year olds taking their theory tests (including hazard perception) as a standard part of their year 11. (Doing this through school would eliminate 'ringers' taking tests for a fee.)

I would allow them to start driving lessons with a qualified instructor in a dual control car as soon as the theory test is passed.

I would let them take their tests at seventeen.

I would make it law that all new drivers display green Provisional plates for at least a year, and that certain limits were placed on social driving and engine size, together with zero tolerance of alcohol during that provisional period.

I would create a new grade of driving instructor/examiner, and make it compulsory for all drivers to complete a minimum number of hours motorway driving, night driving and driving in adverse weather conditions, plus at least one session in a skid pan, with and to the satisfaction of one of these senior instructors. All these would have to be completed within two years of passing the test, and P plates displayed until that time.

I would also have disqualification and retesting at just six penalty points for all new drivers and all drivers under 21.

I would also encourage insurance companies to give real incentives to young drivers to pass further voluntary tests, including building up their own no-claims while driving a parent's car as a named driver.

Mind you, I would also have random retests drawn from the lists of all drivers who have current penalty points on their licence (for whatever reason and however few) for which test they would have to pay if they failed. Only a perfectly clean licence would offer imunity from retesting.