A DRIVER who swerved in and out of traffic before knocking down and killing a seven-year-old boy on a pedestrian crossing was jailed yesterday for more than five years.

Mark Tye, 22, reached speeds of more than 60mph in a 40mph zone as he approached the crossing on Newcastle's A167 dual carriageway.

He knocked down cystic fibrosis sufferer David Cameron who was playing on his bike with friends in June last year. He was killed instantly, Newcastle Crown Court was told.

Tye admitted causing death by dangerous driving at an earlier hearing.

Judge John Milford jailed him for five years and three months, and banned him from driving for five years.

Following the sentence, the dead boy's father, also called David, 42, who lives in Blakelaw, Newcastle, said: "The sentence was more than we expected, but it will never be enough. The law should be changed so it's a life for a life."

The boy's mother, Debbie, 35, said: "His life span was only going to be 30 to 35, but we have only seen seven."

The court earlier heard how Tye overtook one car, passed another on the inside, then moved back to the outside lane as he approached the crossing.

David rode his bike across the busy trunk road and had not waited for the light to turn red for the traffic.

The court had heard how the BMW 3-series, with a personalised registration number, had defective brakes, tyres and leaking suspension.

Although this did not cause the collision, the judge said the car should not have been on the road.

He said: "The cause of the accident was your excessive speed and determination to pass other traffic with no regard to other road users."

On Monday, Christopher Knox, mitigating, told the judge that Tye, of Chapel Park, Newcastle, was a "thoroughly decent young man".