SIR - The menace of uninsured drivers on our roads seems to go on unchecked in spite of various initiatives including some from the Transport Minister Stephen Ladyman MP, backed up by a BBC TV programme only this week which showed how widespread a problem it is.

Some say that penalties imposed are derisory and do not reflect the seriousness of offences committed, but magistrates' hands are tied under guidelines which limit fines, etc, to the ability of the offender to pay, which seems nonsense to the law-abiding citizen who must find the means to pay his way or do without his car.

In any civilised society the way to make people respect the law can only be to make them afraid of the consequences of breaking it.

Other EU countries have a far lower offending rate than the UK so perhaps the authorities ought to seek guidance from their experience?

D S Boyes, Rodley Lane, Bramley