§ Mr. Fisherasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many police forces are currently using the Lion intoximeter;
(2) how many police forces have instigated reviews of their testing procedures of Lion intoximeters in the past 12 months;
658W(3) whether there have been any drink/drive cases dismissed in the past 12 months because of police failure to carry out testing procedure on Lion intoximeters;
(4) whether he has issued any standard instructions as to the calibration, use and maintenance of Lion intoximeters; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. HurdFor details of the police forces using the Lion intoximeter I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 13 December 1983 at columns 399–400, to my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, East (Mr. Bruinvels). These machines are calibrated at the factory, before delivery to the police, by engineers certified by the British calibration service. Any drift in calibration should be detected by checks which the machine is designed to carry out automatically each time it is used. Home Office guidance has been given that the machines should be serviced every six months. Chief officers of police will no doubt review force instructions if they consider that standard operating procedures are not being complied with. Information about the number of prosecutions which have failed in the past 12 months because of faulty examination of the machine's calibration test results is not available.