The Department for Transport (DfT) will release a green paper later in the spring, which will look at ways of improving driving standards among youngsters.

It will assess different methods of helping newly-qualified motorists to come through the first six months after passing their test unscathed.

One-fifth of people killed or seriously injured in road accidents in 2011 were said to be aged between 17 and 24 and there is a general feeling that young drivers do not receive enough tuition at the moment.

The DfT has proposed introducing a minimum amount of learning time before drivers are able to get behind the wheel on their own and making the driving test more rigorous.

Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin said the government sees improving young driver safety as a "real priority".

News of the green paper has gone down well with the Association of British Insurers, which suggested that insurance premiums could be cut by up to 20 per cent if these new measures are introduced.