BILL Tilley will keep fighting to have Victoria’s P-plate driver age cut to 17, but he does not expect his Liberal Party to adopt it as policy before next year’s state election.
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The member for Benambra is deputy chairman of the Law Reform, Road and Community Safety Committee which tabled a report in parliament on Wednesday recommending the minimum driving age be lowered from 18 to 17 in Victoria.
But Victorian Road Safety Minister Luke Donnellan called a media conference to reject the suggestion only 15 minutes after the report was presented.
Mr Tilley said usually it could take up to six months for governments to respond to recommendations.
“It’s extraordinary, you would think that you would go and have a look at the report,” Mr Tilley said.
Mr Donnellan believes more teenagers will be killed on the roads if the age mark is reduced.
He also rejected a committee recommendation the government should introduce an exemption process for teens to apply for a probationary licence at 17 based on hardship.
Such a measure would be an aid for rural teenagers without public transport to access jobs and bridge the divide between NSW, where P-plates can be obtained at 17, and Victoria.
But Mr Donnellan said it would be problematic.
“The statistics bear out the approach the government is taking,” he said.
“I know people will say ‘there’s an exemption for this, an exemption for that’.
“We’ve got to make road policy across the state, not based on an exemption for this, that and the other.
“It becomes too inconsistent in its approach and is open to too much beating the system.”
Mr Tilley pointed those living either side of the Murray River already had clear differences.
“We do have inconsistencies, we’ve got kids that go over to Albury to get their licence and they go to school in Wodonga,” he said.
The Opposition MP said he would pursue a 17-year-old P-plate law for Victoria, but he believes the Coalition would be unlikely to adopt it in the lead-up to an election.
“It would be shouted down and that’s why I’m critical of politicians and political parties having the will going into the argy-bargy without the facts,” Mr Tilley said.
“There is no state that is going to go up to 18 and we’re not going to go down to 17.
“This is all really about politics and emotion and the lack of political will to do anything.”
