Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981

Disqualification of persons under age N.I.

17.—F1 (1) A person shall be disqualified for holding or obtaining a licence to drive a motor vehicle of a class specified in the following Table if he is under the age specified in relation to it in the second column of that Table.

[F2 TABLE]

[F2 Class of motor vehicle]	[F2 Age (in years)]
[F2 1. Invalid carriage]	[F2 16]
[F2 2. Moped]	[F2 16]
[F2 3. Motor bicycle]	[F2 17]
[F2 4. Agricultural or forestry tractor]	[F2 17]
[F2 5. Small vehicle]	[F2 17]
[F2 6. Medium-sized goods vehicle]	[F2 18]
[F2 7. Other motor vehicle]	[F2 21]

(2) The Department may by regulations provide that paragraph (1) shall have effect as if for the classes of vehicles and the ages specified in the Table thereto there was substituted different classes of vehicles and ages or different classes of vehicles or different ages.

(3) Subject to paragraph (4), the regulations may—

(a) apply to persons of a class specified in or under the regulations;

(b) apply in circumstances so specified;

(c) impose conditions or create exemptions or provide for the imposition of conditions or the creation of exemptions;

(d) contain such transitional and supplemental provisions (including provisions amending Article 19D or 78) as the Department considers necessary or expedient.

(4) For the purpose of defining the class of persons to whom, the class of vehicles to which, the circumstances in which or the conditions subject to which regulations under paragraph (2) are to apply where an approved training scheme for drivers is in force, it shall be sufficient for the regulations to refer to a document which embodies the terms (or any of the terms) of the scheme or to a document which is in force in pursuance of the scheme.

(5) In paragraph (4)—

“approved” means approved for the time being by the Department for the purpose of the regulations;

“training scheme for drivers” means a scheme for training persons to drive vehicles of a class in relation to which the age which is in force under this Article (but apart from any such scheme) is 21 years.

(6) No approved training scheme for drivers shall be amended without the approval of the Department.

[F3 (7) “Medium-sized goods vehicle” specified in the Table includes a tractor and trailer combination.]

F1 mod. by SR 1994/365

F2 SR 1996/426

F3 Art. 17(7) added (19.1.2013) by The Motor Vehicles (Driving Licences) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012 (S.R. 2012/170), regs. 1(1), 2(6)