A point system backed by stricter enforcement was needed if the number of traffic accidents caused by reckless driving were to be cut down, Education Minister Evarist Bartolo said yesterday.

Mr Bartolo acknowledged the need for “more serious” enforcement in a post on Facebook, expressing support for recent suggestions that the point system in place to penalise reckless motorists in their first three years of driving should apply to everybody.

“Without serious enforcement and the introduction of a point system for all drivers that can lead to the revocation of driving licences for those who break the rules and do not change their ways, bad driving habits causing traffic accidents will not stop,” the minister wrote on his social media page.

Photo: Facebook

Malta Insurance Association director general Adrian Galea last month argued that the demerit point system (DPS), introduced in 2004, should not be limited to the first three years after obtaining the driving licence. Instead, the same set of rules should apply to anyone who breaks the rules, irrespective of their number of years on the road.

If a driver exceeds the 12-point mark for breaking the rules, his/her licence is withdrawn. However, as things stand now, once the three-year probationary period expires, the point system is lifted. Such a point system would also allow insurance companies to better differentiate between drivers who regularly broke the law and those who had a clean record, Mr Galea said.