§ Dr. CableTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the number of accidents caused by drivers being distracted by mobile telephones in each of the last five years. [65487]
§ Ms Glenda JacksonInformation on the number of accidents caused by drivers or other road users being distracted by mobile phones is not collected because of the difficulty of establishing exactly when a road traffic accident took place and whether a mobile phone was in use at the time. However, my Department is aware of a number of media reports over the last few years of road fatalities where the use of a mobile phone was alleged to be a factor.
We continue to warn of the dangers of using a mobile phone while driving. The Transport Research Laboratory report "The use of mobile phones while Driving: a review" shows that hand held mobile phones are inappropriate for use while driving and even hands-free mobile phones cause distraction from the driving task.