Wardens are on the lookout to ensure children seated at the back of cars are wearing seat belts, as they are now obliged to do by law.

The president of the Local Councils Association, Ian Micallef, said that up to the middle of the month wardens would be stopping motorists who do not abide by the new regulation and letting them off with a warning. After that, tickets will start being issued.

Adults sitting in the back will have to start belting up on June 1, although wardens will be advising people not to wait until then.

"The aim is to educate people not to make money from such a regulation. The aim is to save lives," Dr Micallef said. Most cars produced in Europe after 1991 are equipped with seat belts. There is no requirement to fit old cars with seat belts because these could actually be more dangerous.

Dr Micallef said drivers or passengers sitting in front without a seat belt would, of course, be booked as usual.

The fine for not wearing seat belts on the back seat is Lm10 and can go up to Lm25. If a fine is contested frivolously, the amount paid, if found guilty, would be doubled.

"We want to embark on a safety campaign," Dr Micallef said. This would include cameras being installed on traffic lights to catch drivers jumping the lights.

"Speed cameras, which will be linked to the police control room, will also be installed in several areas. Although these will be permanent, they can be shifted after some time."

"Motorists will be given advance warning of such cameras as, again, the scope is to make roads safer not to raise money.

"But if there are drivers who will only learn the hard way, the fines will, hopefully, do what educational campaigns would have failed to do," he added.

Transport Minister Censu Galea said statistics showed that even back-seat passengers without seat belts were injured in traffic accidents.

There have also been cases passengers sitting at the back and being thrown forward and killing or seriously injuring drivers or front-seat passengers.