Zero tolerance for all on the roads

Opinion

So the driving age is being increased from 15 to 16 and the blood alcohol limit for drivers under 20 is dropping to zero.
In and of itself, it won't do much to our appalling driving statistics.
But if the government is really serious about dealing with the problem, it needs to go further. The Labour Party, which backed most parts of the bill, which will become law on August 1, said the Government should have reduced the overall blood alcohol limit from the current 0.8 to 0.5 (80mg and 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood).
But why stop there?
If one of our major concerns is the number of drink-drive deaths, why allow any alcohol level at all in people who drive? Why not simply say it is illegal to drive while there is alcohol in your system.
Bizarrely, in the bill as it stands, there is a clause making repeat drink drive offenders subject to a zero limit for three years after they get their licence back. In other words, the recidivist drink-driver can go back to drinking and driving, by law, after three years!
Surely, it's sending the wrong message.
The provisions in the bill are:
* raising the minimum driving age from 15 to 16 ;
* allowing police to take alcohol readings for research purposes from all drivers involved in fatal or serious injury crashes;
* strengthening the restricted licence test;
* lowering the drink drive limit for drivers under 20 to zero;
* repeat drink drive offenders will be subject to a zero limit for three years after they get their licence back;
* allow courts the option to require repeat or serious drink drive offenders to use alcohol interlocks
* doubling the maximum sentence for dangerous driving causing death from five years to 10 years.
These are all moves in the right direction, but it's still not enough.
The Government wants research carried out over the next two years before making a decision on reducing the overall blood alcohol limit.
We say there's enough information available now to know that hundreds of people die or are injured on our roads every year becasue of drink-driving. How much more research do we need ?

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