It's hard to argue against moves to make kids aged under 7 sit in booster or car seats when being driven around.

Even if you were inclined to argue. Which you might, on the basis that increasing the age from under 5 to under 7 sounds like over-the-top mamby-pamby political correctness, and who cares if that's what Australia does.

No, you won't get far with that, because we're talking about saving young lives and there must be something wrong with you if you didn't want that.

Yes but how far do you go?

This thought crosses my mind because I remember how we were carted around as kids. Six of us in the back of a Commer Cob. No seatbelts? Hell, there were no seats.

By the time I had kids though, seatbelts were mandatory and we had a fight to keep one 5-year-old in a booster because, from where we sat, the adult belt would have taken his head off in a crash, but from where he sat, still being in a booster seat when going to school was decidedly uncool.

Ogres, we were, but now we could blame the government, at least for another two years.

And maybe that's the point. Why should we have to rely on the government to set such rules for us?

Why can't we rely on our own common sense?

Because, obviously, we are all idiots.

It's just that the government doesn't know which of us is going to be the idiot at any given time and so has to make a blanket rule for all.

So booster or car seats up to the age of 7, while 7 and 8-year-olds will have to use one if it is available.

It's interesting that the Government hasn't gone for a height limit rather than age, as that would be more relevant.

Safekids New Zealand would like to see all children under the height of 148 centimetres in a booster seat or an approved child restraint.

That makes sense, unless you're a driver who is that short. In which case, you probably should have some sort of booster as well.

Bottom line, it's a shame the government can't trust people to be sensible but understandable that it can't.

And it is going to draft special rules for those with large families. And Commer Cobs.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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