5. Mr. J. P. W. Mallaieuasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is satisfied with the working of the law in regard to the operation of radar speed checks on motorists; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Mr. WoodhouseRadar meters provide impartial evidence of the speed of a vehicle and are effective and useful aids to the police in enforcing speed limits, the proper observance of which is an important factor in road safety.
Mr. MallalieuWould not the hon. Gentleman agree that the purpose of these checks is to catch the motorist who is driving dangerously and not necessarily to deal with someone who in conditions of safety may be making a technical breach of the law? Does radar do that?
§ Mr. WoodhouseI am advised that these instruments are reliable and accurate as instruments of enforcement available to the police. I could not go the whole way with the hon. Member in so far as his supplementary question appeared to imply that exceeding the speed limit is not in itself an offence.