Mother caught with two-year-old on her knee while 13-year-old boy drove their car told stunned police: 'It's only a short journey'

Padholme Road in Peterborough where police stopped the teen driver

A 13-year-old boy who was caught driving a car with a toddler, 2, and its mother inside claimed "it was only a short journey" when pulled over.

Police stopped the vehicle in Peterborough at 11am today and said the woman was the mother of the toddler and related to the young driver.

Officers are now looking at "numerous offences" in the case and the woman and teenager may be prosecuted.

The teenager was stopped on Padholme Road by the Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Road Policing Unit.

A spokesman for the unit said in a tweet that the toddler was sitting unrestrained on its mother's knee at the time.

When officers pulled the car over, those inside told police that it was "only a short journey".

It's not known if there were any arrests.Age 13 falls well below the legal age to drive in Britain.

The minimum age to hold a full driving licence is 17, or 16 for some people claiming mobility benefit.

Drivers in England, Scotland and Wales must pass a theory test, then a practical test before they can even apply for a full driving licence in the UK.