Calls To Lower Drink-Drive Limit In England

The Police Federation has said the drink-drive limit in England and Wales should be lowered.

The organisation, which represents rank and file officers in England and Wales, wants the limit cut from 80 to 50 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood.

It added that more also needs to be done in order to discourage more women from driving while drunk. The Police Federation has said the number of casualties and accidents caused by drinking and driving has fallen over the years. More men are still caught drink-driving than women, but women's convictions are increasing as a proportion of all convictions (+17%), while male rates have fallen by 24%.

Victoria Martin, Police Federation Representative, explained: "We've seen a steep decline in men drink driving over the years, with targeted advertising campaigns which is great, but women don't seem to be getting the same message.

"It seems we have a worrying trend with females still flouting the drink drive limit, sometimes scarily unaware, putting themselves and others in danger as well as adding to the drain on police resources."

She added: "We would like to see a lower drink drive limit as most other European countries have as well as Scotland which saw a marked reduction in failed breathalyser tests as soon as the law was changed last year. We would also like to see road safety back on the national and local agenda."

A study by Social Research Associates (SRA) last year, as well as a report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, suggest an increase in alcohol consumption among middle-aged, educated women. As part of SRA's research, they also asked whether women drove after drinking, and why.

Of those women surveyed, 40% admitted to driving after drinking alcohol, with many not realising they could have been over the limit. More than a third believed they could legally drive after a pint or more of (5% abv) beer, and almost 15% thought they could drink more than a 175ml glass of (12% abv) wine and still be under the limit.

Kris Beuret OBE, Director of Social Research Associates and author of the study, said: "This is the first specific research on the subject which has shown that many reasons for women drink driving are gender specific.

"These include the effects of different metabolism on men and women's bodies, confusion about how many units are in alcoholic drinks – especially wine – and thinking that the police would be less likely to stop them.

"In addition some women drove over the limit due to family pressures.

"The study also found that several important messages aren't getting across to women – and this is reinforced by the generally male dominated imagery of anti-drink driving campaigns.

"Some women in the study even admitted trying to drive 'extra carefully' but this is no solution, getting caught is a real risk and there is almost always an alternative."

(JP)