HOME Secretary Michael Howard will announce tomorrow that courts are to be given the power to take away a criminal's driving licence as part of a sentence.

It's an excellent idea. And it will mean that whether their offences involved a motor vehicle or not, criminals could be banned from the road.

Too often judges and magistrates are frustrated in handing out tough enough sentences because the law does not allow them to do so. It is about time the pendulum swung the other way and villains were made to suffer for their crimes.

Losing their driving licences would be a punishment that would not only make life more difficult for them, it might put paid to some of their criminal activities altogether.

We are not naive enough to believe that losing a licence will deter all hardened criminals. But as one Home Office spokesman has said, people value their mobility and a driving ban will hit where it hurts.

At the moment courts can only take away driving licences for offences relating to driving or where a car is involved.

The power to take away licences for offences unrelated to vehicles will increase a court's sentencing options.

Mr Howard plans to set up pilot schemes to assess the effectiveness of the measure. We believe they will be highly effective.

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