§ 45. Mr. Pageasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation whether he is aware that the footnote to page 6 of the Highway Code implies that going too fast contributes to only one in every 35 road accidents; and on what evidence this statement is based.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterNo, Sir. The note on page 6 of the Highway Code was based on police reports, which showed that during the years 1951–1953 excessive speed featured in about 1 in 24 road accidents.
§ Mr. PageIs not my right hon. Friend aware that the chief constables and commissioners of police have said again and again that the police cannot give reliable figures on the speed of vehicles before accidents; and does he not think that the figure of only 7,500 as being contributed to by cars going too fast is a little misleading?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterOpinions can differ on causes of accidents. Frankly, in a document like the Highway Code I prefer to put in figures which are certainly not exaggerated.
§ Lieut.-Colonel LiptonIs it not a fact that an overwhelming majority of these kinds of accidents is due to the fact that the car is unable to stop in time, and that is due to the fact that it is going too fast? So why try to disguise that very obvious fact from the people of this country who are being knocked down to a greater extent than ever before?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterI am not disguising any facts. I am putting in the Highway Code the figures which, on the authority of the police, have been made available to me.
§ Mr. Hugh FraserIn view of the footnote to page 6, would my right hon. Friend consider now raising the speed limit of heavy lorries to between 20 to 30 miles an hour?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterI do not think that arises out of this Question.