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The UK Government has said that it is uniquely placed to lead the development of driverless cars following the launch of prototype driverless cars that will be trialed at four UK cities.

Business secretary Vince Cable said that the trials, which have received a £19m investment from the government, would help the country keep itself at the cutting edge of automotive technology and could bring more highly skilled jobs to the UK.

Cable said: "It’s important for jobs, growth and society that we keep at the forefront of innovation, that’s why I launched a competition to research and develop driverless cars.

"The trials present a fantastic opportunity for this country to take a lead internationally in the development of this new technology."

"The projects we are now funding in Greenwich, Bristol, Milton Keynes and Coventry will help to ensure we are world-leaders in this field and able to benefit from what is expected to be a £900bn industry by 2025."

However, a report by the UK’s Department of Transport has also confirmed that it will be necessary to bring about changes to road regulations to make way for driverless cars on the roads of the country.

The government has announced that it will publish a code of practice in the spring which will allow the testing of autonomous cars to go ahead and will also carry out a full review of current legislation by the summer of 2017.

UK Transport Minister Claire Perry said: "Driverless cars are the future. I want the UK to be at the forefront of this exciting new development, to embrace a technology that could transform our roads and open up a brand new route for global investment.

"These are still early days but today is an important step. The trials present a fantastic opportunity for this country to take a lead internationally in the development of this new technology."

Image: The UK Government has given a £19m investment for the trial of driverless cars. Photo: courtesy of Gov.uk.