What is it going to take to stop young people drinking and driving?
A new law introduced a year ago to do just that has so far failed. Ministry of Justice figures show that 45 people under the age of 20 were convicted in the Rotorua District Court of drink-drivingbetween August 7 and December 31 last year.
That number is just one less than the 46 convicted in the same period in 2010. According to the figures released by the Rotorua police to The Daily Post as part of a monthly list of those convicted for drink-driving, 42 people under 20 were convicted between January 1 and May 31 this year.
Police say it's too early to say if the law is working and believe it will in time. One can only hope they are right.
Officials talk about it being too easy for young people to get alcohol and we've heard of parents supplying their kids with grog at so called "controlled" parties.
I don't mean to be a party pooper but how on earth are young people supposed to avoid the temptation to drive after drinking if their parents are giving them the alcohol?
Some may say I don't have any right to comment as I'm not a parent but I've seen some of the boundaries set by friends who have teenage children. Sure, your child may not thank you for the boundaries now but they will in the future when they and their mates are still alive.
I remember boundaries set for me as a teenager. People may say that times have changed since my teenage years of the 1980s - but have they? Getting behind a wheel after drinking alcohol can still kill or maim.
Road safety officials say they've heard the excuse from some teenagers who say they drove because they were the most sober. If that was the case, surely they would be sober enough to say no to driving and call a family member or a friend to pick them up or suggest that each of them put in $5 for a cab home.
Better $5 than a fine of hundreds of dollars for driving after drinking and not being allowed to drive for a time.
I know the judges are restricted in what they can impose but maybe a short stint behind bars may give young people who drink and drive the shock they need to stop getting behind a wheel after drinking.
What else is it going to take to stop our young people drinking and driving?
