A ban on Southern learners driving on their own comes into effect next week.

At the moment, the Republic of Ireland is the only country in the EU where learner drivers can drive a car without an experienced driver present in the car alongside them as long as they're on their second provisional licence (this only applies to provisional licences which were discontinued in October 2007 and replaced with learners' permits, which have tighter restrictions). The unsurprising result of this is that many people never feel any particular need to apply for a full licence.

It's a rather silly situation; I mean why bother going through all those lessons and the pressure of a test when you can already drive largely unrestricted and unhindered without it. The exception is that you're barred from motorways but outside Dublin and the south-east this probably wouldn't rank highly on one's list of concerns.

As of next week, however, the Republic of Ireland will be brought into line with the rest of the British Isles and indeed Europe in requiring learners to be supervised by an experienced driver (in the Republic 2 years is considered sufficient experience as distinct from the 3 years stipulated in the UK) or face a €2,000 fine or 3 months in prison.