§ 15. Mr. SoleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what was the average number of children (a) killed and (b) seriously injured in road accidents per day in the last three months. [24732]
§ Mr. NorrisDespite a 4 per cent. decrease in the last quarter of 1995, compared with the same quarter in 1994, 86 children were killed and some 1, 500 seriously injured; nearly one death and 16 serious injuries a day.
§ Mr. SoleyDoes the Minister agree that those figures need the widest possible publication? Is not it a fact that the greatest fear for parents when their children walk the streets is not crime, but road accidents, and that that prevents parents from letting their children walk or cycle to school? Is not it high time that we asked ourselves, as a society, whether that is a price worth paying?
§ Mr. NorrisI welcome the hon. Gentleman's remarks. I often reflect on the fact that 10 people are killed on our roads every day. While the fact that the figure is substantially less than the 14 or 15 who were killed seven or eight years ago is welcome, it still represents an appalling loss of life. We have become so used to glossing over it that, whereas one death in other unfortunate circumstances can give rise to reams of media interest, these deaths, which happen every day, particularly the harrowing deaths of children, are almost unremarked. The first lesson that we must draw from that is that 95 per cent. of accidents involve human error. They may be errors by drivers or by pedestrians, but where children are concerned, drivers need to understand that a child will not necessarily have the same understanding of road safety and road speeds as an adult and the need for particular care has to be indoctrinated into drivers in those circumstances. We do not have the best record on child casualties, despite our good record overall, and I am concerned that we should undertake research to find out how we can reduce that dreadful total.