NHS Tayside were following in the wake of the UK Government’s chief medical officer, who said 17 to 20-year-olds who had been drinking were over twice as likely as older drivers to crash.

MPs on the House of Commons transport committee have also suggested drivers should face a zero limit for the first 12 months after passing their test.

In their submission, NHS Tayside welcomed the Scottish Government’s wish to cut the legal blood alcohol limit for all motorists and bring in random breath testing.

But they said, “We suggest, however, that the proposals in these areas might be bolder, moving towards a zero alcohol limit for driving.

“If this is not seen as a feasible step to take at present, serious consideration should be given to introducing a zero limit for newly-qualified drivers, as there is also evidence to support this as an effective means of reducing alcohol-related road injury.”

Across Europe, 14 countries have zero or near-zero limits for novice motorists. Some Australian states have similar rules, as does Florida. The introduction of a zero limit in Ontario, Canada, resulted in crashes involving teenage drivers falling by a fifth.

In July, chief medical officer Sir Liam Donaldson said a no-alcohol rule was needed because young drivers were more affected by small amounts of drink than older people, but were less conscious of the risks.

He noted there had been more than 1000 drink-drive accidents involving teenage drivers in 2005 and young people were more likely to die in a road accident than from other causes.

Sir Liam explained they wanted to see a limit fractionally above zero introduced to ensure that people who used alcohol-based mouthwash were not wrongly charged.

The Commons transport committee said that although under-25s made up only one in eight licence holders, they accounted for a third of the drivers killed in crashes, rising to half the fatalities at night. They described novice drivers as “extremely vulnerable” and said that “bold measures” were needed to cut deaths and injuries.

The drink-drive limit is not a devolved power, so any changes in the law would have to be made by Westminster rather than Holyrood. So far the UK Government has not given any commitment to cutting the limit for young drivers.

It has pointed out that it would be necessary to develop breath-testing machines that were approved to measure a limit other than the present 35mg per 100ml.

There would also have to be a way for police officers to determine someone’s age and driving experience before making an arrest. The law at present does not require someone to carry their driving licence or proof of age.