I agree that a brush up on the skills front, including having a driving instructor give them some lessons (and get them to give your friend a 'mock driving test') is not only a great idea but a very necessary one.
I learned to drive when I was 18 in Sixth Form, but didn't drive again until I was 24, other than once (6 months earlier) taking my firm's Fiesta van 200yrds round to the local dealer. Needless to say, after the brief go with the little van, I thought I needed a brush-up, but didn't go to a driving instructor.
When I bought my car (a Micra, easy to drive in the grand scheme), I was very rusty and thus did not drive it to work for a good two weeks, instead taking it out with one of my parents as passenger and for reassurance. Whilst I improved enough to then drive by myself, I think I would've improved quicker had I gone with an instructor instead, and avoided an argument with my Dad!
For your friend, I suspect his skills will be far more rusty than mine were, especially as I was far more concious that this may be the case. There's nothing worse than an over-confident driver on the road - they could easily kill themselves and others because they either take unecessary risks or are over-awed by driving in the modern world - even for me, driving (continuously) since the late 90s, the experience has changed quite a bit.
IMHO, traffic levels are far higher, people drive faster, brake later, are less attentive and take more risks. In many areas, what used to be 'rush hours' form most of the day.
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