WIREDGOV

The legal drink drive limit should be lowered in England and Wales to help cut alcohol-related accidents, which new provisional figures show have risen, urged councils and fire and rescue authorities 

The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents more than 370 councils and all fire and rescue authorities in England and Wales, is calling on the Government to drop the current limit from 80mg to 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood.

England and Wales have one of the highest drink drive limits in the world and the highest in Europe, with the exception of Malta who have announced plans to lower their limit to 50mg. Northern Ireland is also due to introduce a lower limit this year.

Between 2010 and 2015 the number of people killed in reported drink drive accidents has remained between 220 and 240.

It is estimated that lowering the drink drive limit could save up to 170 lives in the first year of implementation, rising to more than 300 lives in the sixth year. A lower limit would also save £300 million annually by reducing the number of 999 responses and hospital admissions.

New provisional government figures show that reported ‘serious' drink drive accidents between 2014 and 2015 in Great Britain have risen from 880 to 980 – an increase of 11 per cent – while total reported drink drive accidents have risen from 5,620 to 5,740 – a 2 per cent increase.

The same figures show the number of people seriously injured in reported drink drive accidents between 2014 and 2015 has risen from 1,070 to 1,170 – an increase of 9 per cent – while the total number of drink drive casualties has risen from 8,210 to 8,480 – a 3 per cent increase.

Scotland, which has lowered the drink drive limit to 50mg, saw a 20 per cent reduction in fatal road accidents in the first year after the new limit was introduced.

Cllr Simon Blackburn, Chair of the LGA's Safer and Stronger Communities Board, said:

"England and Wales will soon have the highest drink drive limit in Europe which is not sending the right message to motorists and safety campaigners.

"Latest figures show that alcohol has contributed to a rise in both the number of road accidents and those injured in the UK. Lowering the drink drive limit could save up to 170 lives in the first year alone and almost £300 million annually by reducing the number of call-outs to accidents, emergency service costs and hospital admissions.

"The Government should be leading by example by toughening up drink drive laws in line with other European countries which will make roads safer and save lives. In Scotland alone, adopting a lower alcohol limit has led to a significant fall in fatal road accidents.

"Fire and rescue authorities, which run hard-hitting road safety campaigns to tackle drink driving to show the tragic consequences of road traffic collisions, want to see a lower alcohol limit introduced as it would help to reduce these fatal and traumatic accidents.

"A lower alcohol limit would help to deter motorists from drinking at all before getting behind the wheel and encourage them to have ‘none for the road'.

"With Northern Ireland set to follow Scotland's example, and numerous organisations supporting a lower alcohol limit, the Government should examine the evidence from other countries and lower the drink drive limit in order to improve public safety."

Notes to editor:

1. Estimated number of reported drink drive accidents and casualties in Great Britain.
2. A ‘serious drink drive accident' is one in which a driver or rider has failed a breath test and at least one person is seriously injured but no person (other than a confirmed suicide) is killed. A serious injury is classed as one in which a person is detained in hospital as an in-patient, or any of the following injuries whether or not they are detained in hospital: fractures, concussion, internal injuries, crushings, burns (excluding friction burns), severe cuts, severe general shock requiring medical treatment and injuries causing death 30 or more days after the accident.
3. A Government commissioned report in 2010 by Sir Peter North recommended cutting the drink drive blood alcohol limit from 80mg to 50mg and cited figures from the National Institute of Clinical Excellence, which estimated that as many as 168 lives could be saved in the first year of a reduced limit with an estimate of up to 303 lives saved annually by the sixth year. The report said that motorists with a blood alcohol level between these two levels have a six times greater risk of road death than a non-drinking driver.
4. In December 2014 the drink driving limits in Scotland were reduced to 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood. The number of people killed in road accidents in Scotland fell by 20 per cent from 203 in 2014 to 162 in 2015. The number of casualties fell by 3 per cent over the same period to 10,950.
5. Reducing the drink drive limit would save £300 million each year in costs to emergency services.http://ahauk.org/lower-drink-drive-limit-moves-one-step-closer-in-parliament/
6. Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), Brake, Fire Brigades Union, Police Federation, RAC Foundation, AA all support a lower drink drive limit. 
7. In 2000, the Government's Road Safety Strategy estimated that reducing the limit to 50mg could save 50 lives and prevent 250 serious injuries each year. A later examination of the figures suggested it could save 65 lives each year and prevent 230 serious injuries. "Reducing the BAC level to 50 mg – What Can We Expect to Gain", R Allsopp, PACTS Research Briefing, 2005.
8. An international review of the impact of introducing or lowering alcohol limits found that they resulted in fewer drink drive accidents, deaths and injuries.
9. The LGA's annual Fire Conference takes place on March 7-8 at Hilton Newcastle Gateshead. For accreditation, email alan.harris@local.gov.uk