Another small body lies on a cold mortuary slab, another young life is cut short and another family is devastated.

Callum John Oakfield's death was a tragic accident which should never have happened. The man who left him to die was living and driving in this country without any of the necessary legal documents for residence or driving.

What is the problem with our system of justice if this man cannot be punished severely? The legal response to this tragedy seems to say if you are here illegally, uninsured or untaxed, our laws can do little to punish you.

Is this really the message we want to send out about justice in the UK?

I have more than a passing interest in this matter. In 1997, we fostered Vasile, a 17-year-old boy from a state children's home in Romania.

The Immigration and Nationality Department in Croydon generated its normal incomprehensible, bureaucratic obstacles but, in spite of this, Vasile is here legally.

He needed to learn how to drive. His lessons cost more than £500 but he earned money (legally) and helped to pay for those lessons.

He is now a young man in his twenties so the insurance premium is hefty but he needs insurance to drive the car and he helps to pay for it.

His car has to be automatic because he is permanently disabled in one leg. Such cars are expensive so he will have to wait until he can afford to buy one.

When he wanted to go to university, he had to pay the rates for an overseas student and, thanks to the generosity of readers of The Argus and the West Sussex County Times, the money was found and Vasile is making a success of his opportunities.

We have done everything honestly and openly and have had to pay through the nose as a result.

Meanwhile, someone else enters the country illegally. He is devious enough to bypass our laws and presumably pays little, if anything, for the privileges he gains from living here.

A child has died and yet the Press reports seem to suggest there is little we can do about it. Has the world gone mad?

I doubt the government of Algeria (the country from which this man came) would deal so leniently with UK citizens who treated their laws with such contempt.

No wonder there is an influx of illegal immigrants arriving in the UK. The message we are giving seems to be that almost anything is acceptable.

There is nothing we can do to put the clock back. But we can try to do something for the memory of a little boy whose life was cut short.

We can put pressure on those who make our laws to do something now about soft laws. Collective hand-wringing is not an option.

-Dr Stuart Newton, Horsham