§ Mr. GaleTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment. Transport and the Regions, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Fermanagh and South Tyrone (Mr. Maginnis), of 15 January 1998,Official Report, column 259, what studies his Department has evaluated into the proportion of collapses at the wheel caused by hypoglaecemia. [27561]
§ Ms Glenda Jackson[holding answer 9 February 1998]: A 1983 review of police reported accidents by the then Senior Medical Adviser at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency found that insulin-treated diabetes was responsible for 17 per cent. of 1,600 reported accidents involving collapse at the wheel in which the driver survived. A review of 100 of those accident cases revealed that 35 per cent. of the drivers had suffered from altered consciousness and 62 per cent. from complete loss of consciousness. More generally, the Secretary of State's Honorary Advisory Panel on Diabetes and Driving constantly reviews research findings on the road safety aspects of driving by diabetics treated by insulin as part of their role in advising the Department.