Mr. Robert G. HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress is being made in reducing the amount of drinking and driving on roads in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. Peter BottomleyWe are making better progress than almost anywhere else in the world. Latest attitude surveys show an increasing understanding that drinking and driving do not mix. Changing attitudes are particularly marked among young men—our prime target group, although we still need to see faster progress among middle-aged men. The surveys found that over the last 10 years the numbers of men who admit to driving after drinking alcohol have nearly halved. The proportion driving after drinking six plus units of alcohol has fallen by over two thirds.
The number of accidents where drink is a factor also appears to be decreasing. The number of drivers in an accident who failed a breath test reached a peak of 14.000 in 1979, and has since fallen to 13,500 in 1980 and to 799W 11,000 in 1987. The proportion of drivers or riders killed in accidents who were found to have an illegal blood alcohol level fell from 31 per cent. in 1980 to 23 per cent in 1987.