I won't be drawn on the prattishness or otherwise of Mr Clarkson, but do I deduce from melodeonboy's remark that he is in favour of the government's proposed mileage charges for motorists, and the intrusion into people's lives that will inevitably result, should this proposal go ahead?

I'm not in favour for the reasons stated above - the congestion on our roads could be reduced by:

- increasing fuel tax
- introducing road tolls for bottlenecks (e.g. M25 in peak times)
- raising the minimum driving age to 25
- introducing a maximum driving age, or at least a retest at (say) 80

Another factor is that the population is increasing due to immigration (legal or otherwise) - the government seems to overlook the fact that the pressure on roads is increasing in proportion to the population rising, just as it is on housing and other infrastructure (schools, hospitals, trains, water, etc.), especially in urban areas (and the south-east in particular). Maybe immigrants could have to wait a year before being allowed a licence, or something? Not sure of the implications of this - there's probably some EU agreement that would make this impossible.