Northern Ireland brings in graduated licensing, as Finland’s night-time ban shows early promise

Northern Ireland became the first part of the UK to introduce graduated driver licensing on 1 October.

Under the new system, learner drivers must wait at least six months before taking their test, and complete a programme of training with a logbook. Once they pass, drivers under 24 face restrictions on carrying young passengers between 11pm and 6am for their first six months, and must display an R plate for two years. In Great Britain, the government has so far only consulted on a minimum learning period of three or six months for learner drivers, and on lowering the drink-drive limit for all drivers in England and Wales.

In Finland, the first figures since a night-time driving ban for 17-year-olds came into force in May look encouraging. The ban applies between midnight and 5am. According to ETSC member Traficom, 17-year-old car drivers were involved in 18 serious crashes this summer, compared with an average of 28 in the same months of previous years. Only one of those happened at night, against between two and 13 in earlier summers. Traficom told the Moottori website that three months of data are not yet statistically robust, but that the ban appears to be working as intended.

Belgium, meanwhile, will lower the drink-driving limit for everyone who has held a licence for less than three years from 0.5 g/l to 0.2 g/l in 2027. Mobility Minister Jean-Luc Crucke announced the change as figures showed Belgian road deaths up 6% in the first half of 2026. When the revised EU driving licence directive was agreed last year, ETSC named Belgium as one of only four EU countries – with Bulgaria, Denmark and Finland – still applying the general 0.5 limit to novice drivers. A proposed EU-wide zero tolerance rule for novices was dropped in the final deal.

ETSC has long argued that graduated licensing, including night-time and passenger restrictions and zero tolerance for alcohol, is an effective way to cut crashes among new drivers. Its recommendations are set out in its position paper on the revision of the EU directive.