Band 8+: Task 1: The bar chart shows the percentage of men and women in Great Britain who had driving licenses, and another bar chart shows the percentage of men and women who applied for driving licenses at the age of 17-20. Provide an overview of the information by identifying and describing the key details, and include comparisons where appropriate.

The bar charts illustrate the proportion of men and women in Great Britain who held driving licences between 1967 and 2006, and the percentage of young people who applied for licences at the age of 17 to 20 in 1996 and 2006.

Overall, the proportion of both men and women holding driving licences rose over the period, and the gap between the sexes narrowed considerably. In contrast, the percentage of young people applying for a licence fell for both young men and young women.

The figure for men holding licences stayed at 70% in both 1967 and 1981, then rose by 2 percentage points to 72% in 1986. Over the same years, the proportion of women increased significantly, from 30% to 40%. By 1991, the figures had risen to 75% for men and 44% for women, and by 1996 they reached 78% and 50% respectively.

By 2001, the figure for men stood at 79% and that for women at 53%. Over the following five years, the proportion of men rose only slightly to 80%, whereas the figure for women surged to 60%.

In 1996, around 50% of young men aged 17 to 20 applied for a driving licence, while the proportion of young women was just below 30%. By 2006, both figures had fallen, to 45% and 20% respectively.