Road Safety Bill [HL]

I support the amendment in principle but, as the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw, said, it is a question of resources. It is also a matter of localism. Every school and area has a different solution. We cannot sit here and debate, and have a national scheme. It is up to local people to work out what the scheme should be in their area to benefit its children. Knowing my county as well as I do, I know that there are different solutions all over it. There is no magic solution for one area. Furthermore, with the development of extended schools that will support families as well as children there will, as the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw, said, be many more pre-school classes, breakfast classes and classes in the evening. There will also be more training. What happens now in deprived areas is that families do not give their children the training on using the roads that they ought to have. That solution needs to be sorted out in school as well. But that is what localism is about. The Government have spoken about localism a lot; I am trying to practise it in my area. We do not have central schemes or central initiatives. Local initiatives are needed to solve these problems, but with money, as the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw, said. I am certain that they can be sorted out with some resources. I support the amendment in principle and will look at it as we go on through the Bill.