New drivers under the age of 25 may not be able to carry young passengers as part of a proposed "graduated driving licence" scheme to protect inexperienced drivers and prevent future deaths.
Restrictions would see changes made to the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act to ban drivers from carrying passengers under 25 in the first year or six months after passing their test.
The Road Traffic legislation already puts new motorists on probation and they lose their licence if they reach six penalty points in the first two years.
The new proposal has been approved by Support for Victims of Road Crashes, an advisory committee to the Department for Transport (DfT).
Restrictions would drivers banned from carrying passengers under 25 in the first year or six months after passing their test
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Sharron Huddleston has fought for the law change since her daughter Caitlin, 18, was killed in a car crash when her friend, Skye Mitchell, 18, lost control of the car and also died in 2017.
She had passed her test four months previously.
“There is nothing I can do to bring Caitlin back but I am determined, in her memory, to ensure that no other family goes through the pain and agony that we go through every day,” Huddleston told The Times.
“It has left a huge, gaping hole in our family. Every Christmas, every birthday, it is just devastating.”
The crash took place 15 minutes into their journey on a Cumbrian country road on a wet evening.
An inquest found that Mitchell, as a new driver, had been going "a little too fast" for the conditions when the collision took place with a van travelling in the opposite direction.
The coroner recommended that graduated driving licences be introduced to prevent future deaths.
According to road safety charity Brake, passengers of a similar age are four times more likely to be involved a fatal crash than if they are driving alone.
Passengers of a similar age are four times more likely to be involved a fatal crash than if they are driving alone, according to a road safety charity
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The charity claims that peer pressure leads to young motorists showing off after 590 young drivers and 357 young passengers aged under 25 died on the road, in the six years to 2020.
The scheme had been considered under Theresa May's government, but was halted following concerns around nighttime driving and newly-qualified under 25s who worked shifts, such as doctors and nurses.
A DfT spokesperson said: "Every death or serious injury on our roads is a tragedy, and we continue to work tirelessly to improve road safety for all users.
"Our broad approach to improving safety for new and novice drivers is through new technology and improving education, while reinforcing vital road safety messages through our Think! campaign."