A GROUP responsible for training experienced drivers to be safer and cautious on the roads has backed our campaign to lock dangerous motorists up for longer.

The York Institute of Advanced Motorists runs courses in the city to improve driving skills and wants to see those who take unnecessary risks behind the wheel given tougher sentences.

Keith Horner, a member of the group, is backing The Road To Justice campaign as we call on the Government to re-write sentencing guidelines.

Mr Horner said: “We would wholeheartedly support an increase in sentences for those involved in using their phone, drink or drug driving. They need to be adjusted for modern society.

“They are overly lenient and there needs to be a deterrent. We need to let people know that this is not acceptable before they get in a car and do something dangerous.

“Something has got to be done. I read The Press and the number of reports I see about people being stopped for drink driving is increasing and you only have to go out on the roads to see many people on their phones.

“I’m sure many people see drivers using their phones everyday and it’s quite annoying.”

Mr Horner claims it is difficult for his group to have an impact on dangerous drivers as people are not always willing to turn up to a course and improve.

“The people that do these dangerous things are not the kind of people who come forward,” he added.

“We need to take their licence off them and make them work harder to get it back.

“This comes from the Government and it should be them changing things.”

The campaign was launched one week ago today and has already gained support from the victims of dangerous drivers and families who have lost loved ones to reckless motorists.

York MPs Rachael Maskell and Julian Sturdy have also thrown their weight behind The Road To Justice, along with senior police officers and councillors.

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We believe reckless drivers responsible for killing or inflicting life-changing injuries should not be punished lightly.

Judges are bound by strict guidelines which limit the sentences they can hand down.

We believe those guidelines need to change to give victims and families a sense of justice when they walk out of the courtroom to begin rebuilding their lives.

The Press has already published the stories of families and victims affected by dangerous drivers.

This includes Linda Atkinson, a moped rider left on a life support machine for three weeks after she was hit by a speeding driver in St Maurice’s Road, York, last October, and Sean Hamilton, a 10-year-old boy killed by a hit and run driver in Holgate Road.

To support the campaign, go to https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/156369 and sign the petition to urge MPs to take action.

The petition already has more than 18,000 signatures and will be discussed in Parliament when it reaches 100,000.

Follow us online at www.facebook.com/theroadtojustice