EVERY car in Britain could soon have to display an insurance disk similar to a road tax disc, thanks to the efforts of a Bolton MP.

Support is growing for David Crausby's campaign to clampdown on uninsured drivers.

The Bolton North-east MP received a huge boost this week when transport minister David Jamieson announced that an independent report looking at the proposals is due to be published at the end of March.

Today Mr Crausby said: "There are often tragic consequences when people are involved in accidents with uninsured drivers and then find they have no financial support for their injuries.

"I am sure the cost of this scheme would be dwarfed by the amount uninsured drivers are currently costing the insurance groups.

"It is hard to be confident about anything in politics but I am optimistic the Government are about to look at these options as a way of clamping down on this enormous problem."

Britain has one of the highest uninsured driver rates in Western Europe with one in 20 not holding the required documents.

It is believed the problem costs the insurance industry £400 million a year which is then passed on to drivers through higher premiums.

Mr Crausby believes windscreen insurance discs can play a valuable role in reducing the number of uninsured drivers.

He wants to change the law so that either vehicles are insured or drivers have to display a disk featuring their insurance details on the windscreen before getting behind the wheel.

The campaign was launched in November 2003 when he launched a motion calling on the Government to introduce the proposals as legislation.

It won cross party approval and is continuing to gather support from MPs, insurance groups and leading police officers.

Bolton's Chief Superintendent David Lea is also backing the campaign.

According to a survey by insurance group Direct Line, 44 per cent of drivers want more on-the-spot checks to catch those without insurance.

Thirty per cent want fines to increase.