Cash blow in parents' battle to find justice.

Byline: Nick McCarthy

THE Government has told the campaigning parents of Cerys Edwards that it "can't afford" to increase prison sentences for dangerous drivers.

It's a bitter blow for the family of the Sutton Coldfield toddler who was left brain damaged, paralysed and unable to breathe without a ventilator by the speeding teenage son of a millionaire.

Today, her father Gareth described the news as "a kick in the teeth".

More than 13,000 people signed up to the Birmingham Mail-backed Cerys Edwards campaign to demand tougher sentences for drivers like Antonio Boparan, who served just six months in prison for inflicting the catastrophic injuries on the then one-year-old.

The Ministry of Justice has told the family that it did not change dangerous driving laws recently because it was not "affordable" and added that increased sentences would now be too expensive for the "rapidly increasing prison population".

Cerys was severely injured when millionaire's son Boparan smashed head-on with the family car in November 2006. Boparan, of Little Aston, Sutton Coldfield, was jailed for 21 months after being convicted of dangerous driving, but he was released after just six months. If Cerys had died he would have faced up to 14 years in prison. Two months ago, the Mail joined Cerys's mum Tracy and Gareth who met Justice Minister Claire Ward and Transport Minister Paul Clark at Westminster when they handed over the petition.

The ministers assured the family that Justice Secretary Jack Straw would be briefed about the huge public response.

But, today the family have been told, via their lawyer, that nothing will change.

Gareth, aged 44, said: "We put so much effort into this campaign and we are thankful for the support from everybody who signed the petition.

"For them to say 'it is too expensive' is a kick in the teeth.

"We wanted to make sure that no other family would suffer this terrible injustice.

"It has been nearly three years and we are still not back under the same roof. The man responsible served just six months in prison. But our lives have been torn apart," he said.

Claire Ward said: "While we sympathise with the Edwards's point of view, we have to balance any increase in penalty with the impact on the criminal justice system and the taxpayer of a rapidly increasing prison population."

In 2006 it created new offences of causing death by careless driving and causing death when driving unlicensed, disqualified or uninsured.

"Although we would have liked to increase the penalty for dangerous driving at the same time, it was simply not affordable to do everything at once."

OUR SAY: PAGE 60

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Campaign: Cerys Edwards.