An Australian man has been charged over allegations he let a seven-year-old boy drive him home while he was drunk.

Police stopped the car early on Friday when it drove past without its headlights on the Gold Coast in Queensland.

They saw the boy at the wheel and the man in the passenger seat, police said.

The 41-year-old has been charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and adult in charge under the influence of liquor, Queensland police say.

Local media reports say the man was the boy's father.

The boy is reportedly now in the care of relatives and the man is expected to face court on 3 July.

"I shake my head and I'm shocked by the madness of this," Queensland Transport Minister Scott Emerson told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

"I've been out there every day talking about how our road toll is too high."

Joel Tucker, a senior road safety adviser from the Royal Automobile Club Queensland, told Agence-France Presse news agency that it was "a real concern to hear that children were being put in that position".