Stanley Johnson Defends Older Drivers After Prince Philip Crash

20 January 2019, 17:33 | Updated: 20 January 2019, 17:34

Stanley Johnson has defended the right for older people to continue driving after Prince Philip was involved in a crash near the Sandringham Estate in which two women were injured.

The writer and former politician said he felt in a "knickers-in-a-twist school of thought" as the 97-year-old's crash sparked a debate as to whether older drivers should face tougher testing before they can drive.

The Duke of Edinburgh's Land Rover was pictured on its side after colliding with a Kia near the Sandringham Estate where he and the Queen have stayed over Christmas.

The female driver of the Kia suffered cuts while her passenger sustained a broken wrist.

But Stanley Johnson, who is still driving at the age of 78, said he was "alarmed" by the number of people ready to call for stricter rules around testing older people before they get behind the wheel.

Speaking to Ian Payne, the former MEP noted that "younger people are much more likely to crash than older drivers".

"There are 3 million people in the UK who are over 80, and 100,000 over the age of 90 who still have driving licences.

"I just can not see the case for making any changes in the current system, it seems to me it has worked tremendously well.

"I was rather alarmed to see the readiness in which people were coming out and saying we must toughen up the rules for older people."