§ 22. Mr. Summersasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation if he will alter his regulations to provide for a stricter standard of windscreen design in order to eliminate the danger to road safety inherent in the modern windscreens which shatter and become opaque when struck by stones, with a view to effecting a remedy.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterThe problem of the shattering of toughened glass windscreens, which is not always caused by stones, was considered a year or two ago by a Committee of the British Standards Institution, on whose behalf experiments were made by the Road Research Laboratory. As a result, in May last year the Institution amended their specifications of "Safety Glass for Land Transport," to which the manufacturers of toughened glass in this country work, and glass made to the new specification provides a great degree of visibility when shattered.
§ Mr. SummersAre we to take it from that answer that cars manufactured from 384 a certain date are not subject to the risk to which those about which the Question is asked are subjected? Consequently, may buyers feel safe in buying cars which have been made after a certain date?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterAs I think my hon. Friend knows, on the whole windscreen glass is made either of laminated glass or toughened glass. Both have certain disadvantages, but I can assure my hon. Friend that the majority of the cars which are now being built and coming on to the market are fitted with the better type of toughened glass to which I referred in my main answer.