§ Mr. LI. Williamsasked the Minister of Transport how many of the road accidents resulting in death on 24th. 25th, 26th, and 31st December, 1960, were attributable to drinking intoxicants.
§ Mr. Marples:It is not possible to provide figures for all fatal accidents in which intoxicants, taken either by drivers or other road users, were a contributory factor. Statistics are available only for those accidents in which a driver or cyclist was reported as being intoxicated; these reports are confined to cases in which an arrest was made, or would have been made but for the death or serious injury of the person concerned. There were four such fatal accidents in the period 24th-26th December, 1960. Information is not yet available for 31st December.
These figures probably understate the number of accidents in which drink may have been a contributory factor. The investigation early last year by the Road Research Laboratory into fatal road accidents at Christmas 1959 showed that in at least 56 per cent. of the accidents one or more of the persons involved had been drinking alcohol in some form not long before the accident, but in only 4 cases was a driver or cyclist reported at the time of the accident as being intoxicated.