DRIVERS convicted of causing death by dangerous driving will face up to 14 years in prison under proposals announced by the government on Thursday.

Drivers convicted of offences such as careless driving and uninsured driving could face tough community sentences rather than a fine.

The proposals are among recommendations in the government's response to the consultation on road traffic penalties.

The report recommends that the maximum penalty for causing death by dangerous driving; causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs; and causing death by aggravated vehicle taking, should be increased from 10 to 14 years.

Drivers convicted of offences such as driving while uninsured or unlicenced face tough community sentences rather than a fine.

Home Office minister, Bob Ainsworth, said: "The message we are sending out is clear: dangerous driving kills and those found guilty can expect to be severely punished.

"We need to ensure that the deterrent to dangerous driving is adequate if we are to cut death and injuries.

"We are not interested in penalising the ordinary law abiding motorists, who account for the vast majority of drivers. That is why our proposals are targeted on offences where better driving would have a significant impact on road safety."

AA head of road safety policy, Andrew Howard, welcomed the proposals.

He said: "This is just what our members have been calling for and the necessary action if we are to cut down on the 3,400 people killed on the UK's roads every year."

The key recommendations are:

Maximum penalty for causing death by dangerous driving; causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs; and causing death by aggravated vehicle-taking to be increased from 10 to 14 years in prison;

Tough new community sentences for offences that do not carry a prison sentence;

A two-tier fixed penalty system for speeding offences with a higher level of penalty for more serious offenders; and

Offenders who have at least six penalty points and those disqualified for a period of at least 56 days to have the opportunity to attend, at their own expense, a driver retraining and improvement programme. If successful on the training programme, they would earn remission of three points or 20 per cent of the period of disqualification.