PRESTON'S top cop, chief superintendent Mike Barton, has called for the public to "assist the police in the identification and detection" of people driving uninsured vehicles. With road death and serious injury having plagued the UK since before the Second World War, it is a call to be thankful for.

What about the mobile phone? As unacceptable as uninsured drivers are, their numbers must pale compared to drivers who ignore the mobile phone ban. This menace surely puts children walking and cycling to and from school at much greater risk. Aren't drivers who ignore the mobile phone ban effectively uninsured?

If not, it is time the insurance companies stepped in and did their bit to help with the problem.

Drivers caught on mobiles should lose their no claims bonus, with insurance company spotters out gathering the evidence.

Compared to uninsured drivers, how much time do mobile phone drivers (never off the phone) spend on the road? Expert evidence shows that ignoring the mobile phone ban is equally as dangerous as drink driving. Accordingly, an automatic 12-month driving ban, not a £30 fine, should be the penalty. Should we shop drink-drivers? Should we shop drug dealers?

From a cyclist's point of view - effectively in the firing line - the mobile phone menace deals in death, and is far more apparent, intimidating and unwelcome than any uninsured driver. We desperately need rid of the mobile menace, with with today's camera technology, the job would be easier and safer than riding a bicycle.

Allan Ramsay