§ Dr. A. Thompsonasked the Minister of Transport if, in view of the findings of the Medical Research Council on the effects of alcohol upon driving skill, he will consider legislation to introduce blood tests and to increase the penalties imposed on motorists for drunken driving.
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§ Mr. MarplesThe hon. Member presumably refers to a memorandum in which the Medical Research Council recently published an account of laboratory experiments bearing on the effect of small doses of alcohol on a skill resembling driving. The conclusions published are those of the research team concerned and do not in my view provide a basis on which legislative proposals could be framed for presentation to Parliament. I propose to continue discussions on the general issue with the Medical Research Council.