The government is considering new legislation that would strengthen penalties for unlicensed drivers and address a gap in the current legal framework.
This week, a Labour MP introduced a draft law that would automatically imprison an unlicensed driver who has never had a valid driver's license and causes the death of another person.
On Tuesday, Swindon North MP Will Stone will propose the Road Traffic (Unlicensed Drivers) Bill to the legislature.
He called it the 'Harry Parker Bill' during his statement in the chamber, after the 14-year-old schoolboy from his area who was killed in 2022 by an unlicensed motorist.
The Crown Prosecution Service informed Harry's parents last year that the driver, who was unlicensed, uninsured, and fled the scene without stopping, had had charges against him dropped because there was insufficient evidence to support the claim that their son had died as a result of their reckless driving.
Using the Ten Minute Rule Bill - a motion to seek MPs' permission to introduce a bill to make the case for a new law - Stone told parliament that the current law is 'failing' and the introduction of the bill would 'close dangerous gaps in our legal system to impose real world consequences' for those on the roads without valid licences.
The bill would make causing death while driving without a licence or insurance a specific criminal offence after previous legislation became effectively redundant.
It would require an updated to section 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988.
Those convicted of careless driving offences face between three and nine penalty points on their licence, an unlimited fine, and an automatic ban from driving depending on the severity of the case.
With Harry's parents, Adam and Kelly Parker, present in the chambers, Mr. Stone told colleagues MPs on Tuesday that "the law in its current form is failing."
"A person has no business operating a motor vehicle if they do not possess a valid license." And they endanger lives when they do it.
'I cannot bring back Harry, nor can I give Adam and Kelly the justice that they deserve.
'No legislation, no speech, no court ruling will ever be able to ease their pain.
'What we must do is ensure that no other family has to endure what they have been through.
'The Harry Parker Bill seeks to close the dangerous gaps in our legal system and impose real world consequences on those who choose to drive without a license.
'Those who choose to drive without a valid license will be deemed careless.'
Backbench Ten Minute Rule Bill ideas seldom become law, therefore Tuesday's vote by MPs to move the bill forward for debate as part of the next step of the parliamentary process has been called historic.
To address the amount of fatalities on British roads, the government is reportedly pressing for the bill's adoption as part of Labour's new Road Safety Strategy.
On June 13, the bill will be brought back to Parliament for a second reading.
It would go through several parliamentary stages before possibly becoming law if it were adopted.
It comes almost two decades after the last Labour government introduced a new offence of causing death while driving without a licence or insurance, punishable by up to two years in prison.
However, due to the way the 2006 legislation was worded, its effectiveness was rendered redundant.
The Supreme Court ruled in 2013 that prosecutors still had to prove that careless driving had resulted in the fatality as judges were concerned that otherwise faultless unlicensed drivers would face prison sentences when they were not at fault - for instance, if a drunk pedestrian fell in front of their vehicle.
There is no current national data on the number of unlicensed drivers.
However, past research by the Department for Transport estimated they commit almost one in ten of all motoring offences.
According to the government department, up to 470,000 persons in the UK may be operating a vehicle without a valid license.
"Every death on our roads is a tragedy, and our thoughts remain with the family and friends of Harry Parker," a DfT representative told Sky News.
"The government is dedicated to lowering the number of people killed and injured on our roads, and we take road safety seriously."
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