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UK
Drink-Driving Figures Are Set to Grow
Unless
the Government Acts
(January
28, 2004)
The
UK's drink-drive problems will continue to grow unless the Government
agrees to cut the current alcohol limit, RoSPA said today as figures for
the festive period showed another increase in the proportion of drivers
testing positive after crashes.
Kevin Clinton, Head of Road Safety for the Royal Society for the
Prevention of Accidents, said: "The proportion of people testing
positive over the Christmas and New Year period is now back to what it
was six years ago and the number of people killed in drink drive
accidents annually has also increased.
"There will be no improvement in this dreadful situation unless the
Government accepts that the drink-drive limit should be lowered from
80mg to 50mg and the police are given powers to breath test motorists
anywhere and at anytime.
"The Government's own figures showed that a reduction in the limit
could save 50 lives and prevent 250 serious injuries and 1,200 slight
injuries each year. At levels between 50mg and 80mg drivers are 2 - 4
times more likely to be involved in a fatal accident than drivers with
no alcohol. Britain is now one of only four countries out of 15 in
the EU with a level above 50mg. It is time for the Government to
act."
Figures for England, Wales and Northern Ireland show that nearly nine
per cent of drivers tested after collisions during the Christmas and New
Year period failed a breath test - the highest since 1997/1998. The
estimated number of people killed in drink-related accidents in Great
Britain went up from 530 in 2001 to 560 in 2002. Figures for people
injured in drink-drive accidents are also on the rise.
RoSPA believes education campaigns about the dangers of drinking and
driving must continue alongside rehabilitation courses for offenders
http://www.rospa.com
Source: RoadSafe
DSA
Footnote: the references to '80mg' and '50mg' are the
equivalent to 0.08% and 0.05% BAC, respectively.
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