Report of of the Review Report of the Review of Drink and Drug Driving Law Drink and Drug Driving Law Sir Peter North CBE QC Sir Peter North CBE QC Sir Peter June 2010 Report of the Review of Drink and Drug Driving Law Sir Peter North CBE QC June 2010 Although this report was commissioned by the Department for Transport (DfT), the !ndings and recommendations are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the DfT. While the DfT has made every e"ort to ensure the information in this document is accurate, DfT does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of that information; and it cannot accept liability for any loss or damages of any kind resulting from reliance on the information or guidance this document contains. 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Contents Executive summary 5 List of recommendations 15 Part I: Introduction Chapter 1 Background to the Review 22 Part II: Drink driving Chapter 2 Law and procedure 30 Introduction Legislative history The current law Other procedural issues The current penalty regime for drink driving o"ences Chapter 3 Evidence, issues and opinion 55 Introduction Current statistics Research !ndings Applications and implications of science Issues and opinions Chapter 4 Recommendations and conclusions 91 Introduction Interventions The prescribed blood alcohol limit Penalties for drink driving o"ences Police enforcement of drink drive law Part III: Drug driving Chapter 5 Law and procedure 120 Legislative history The current law Other procedural issues The current penalty regime for drug driving o"ences Chapter 6 Evidence, issues and opinion 133 Introduction Categorising drugs Sources of information Understanding the basis of drug e"ects on safe driving performance Medicines Other procedural issues Issues and opinions 3 Chapter 7 Recommendations and conclusions 167 Evidence of the problem Current law and process Improving the law and process: the road map High risk o"ender scheme Drug driver rehabilitation courses Medicines and medical advice Drugs and drink in combination List of abbreviations 185 Annexes Annex A Consultation questions 188 Annex B Organisations and individuals who submitted 191 written representation and evidence Annex C Organisations and individuals who gave oral 194 evidence to the Review Annex D Visits 196 Annex E Other sources of information 197 Annex F Research evidence 199 Annex G Relevant statutory provisions 203 Annex H Penalties for drink and drug driving o"ences 256 under the Road Tra$c Act 1988 Annex I Sentencing Council – Magistrates’ Court 257 Sentencing Guidelines Annex J Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Guidelines !ne bands 266 Annex K The presentation of drink drive statistics 267 Annex L Breath tests for alcohol by country 269 Annex M Code of Practice for Preliminary Impairment Tests 270 Annex N Police Forms: MG DD/E form and MG DD/F form 279 4 Executive summary The Review of Drink and Drug Driving law was requested by the Secretary of State for Transport to carry out a study into the legal framework in Great Britain governing drink and drug driving. It was asked to consider, in particular: the legal framework applying to drink and drug driving in Great Britain; the evidence on the nature of the drink and drug driving problems which the nation faces; the evidence on the impact of potential measures to reduce drink and drug driving casualties; discussions with, and representations received from, interested groups and individuals. In carrying out the Review, fundamental principles were considered: drink and drug driving are clearly activities which endanger public safety and more should be done to detect and deter those driving while impaired by drink and drugs; there should be a focus on practical steps which can deal with a significant part of the problem of drink and drug driving – the best must not be the enemy of the good; the law should command respect among the general public and the public should understand both the law and the effects of drugs and alcohol upon driving; the law and penalties imposed should be focussed on road safety (not on enforcement of wider law or policy on drugs and drink) and should reflect the degree of risk caused by impairment; the procedures involved in enforcing the law should be fair to both the citizen suspected of the offence and to the wider public who are at risk from drink and drug driving; the evidence of both the level of drink or drugs in a suspect’s body and the level of impairment should provide the best practicable indication of the levels at the time of driving; the penalties for the offences should be a deterrent, adequate punishment for the offence and should safeguard the public; any changes to the law or legal procedure need to be accompanied by appropriate and complementary campaigns of public information and enforcement. Drink driving Over recent decades there has been a welcome reduction in deaths and serious injuries on the roads, including those associated with drink driving. However, there are still some 430 deaths and 1600 serious injuries every year which are attributable to drink driving. Reduction in that number requires further road safety initiatives to be adopted. 5 Report of the Review of Drink and Drug Driving Law Improving the evidence Whilst the annual figures of road deaths due to drink driving are a reliable estimate, they are not an exact actual figure. Steps should be taken to improve the completeness of the actual figures which are available by requiring coroners (and procurators fiscal) to report all results of blood alcohol levels of drink driver fatalities. The alcohol limit There is very considerable public support for a reduction in the current drink drive limit, commonly expressed as 80 milligrammes (mg) of alcohol per 100 millilitres (ml) of blood (shortened to 80 mg/100 ml and equivalent to 35 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 ml of breath). That support is clear from the evidence to the Review, both written and oral. Furthermore, a reduction would be consistent with the approach adopted by a large majority of countries in the EU. Research evidence consistently demonstrates that the risk of having an accident increases exponentially as more alcohol is consumed. Drivers with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of between 20 mg/100 ml and 50 mg/100 ml have at least a three times greater risk of dying in a vehicle crash than those drivers who have no alcohol in their blood. This risk increases to at least six times with a BAC between 50 mg/100 ml and 80 mg/100 ml, and to 11 times with a BAC between 80 mg/100 ml and 100 mg/100 ml. There is a case for a reduction to 20 mg/100 ml which would be wholly consistent with a policy of “Do not drink and drive”. However, only a small minority of other countries have such a “zero tolerance” approach. It would seem to be a step too far in this country, at this time, risking the loss of public support for strengthening our drink drive legislation. A reduction to 50 mg/100 ml would undoubtedly save a significant number of lives. In the first year post-implementation, estimates range from at least 43 to around 168 lives saved – as well as avoiding a larger number of serious injuries – a conservative estimate is 280. At the other end of the range, avoiding as many as almost 16,000 injuries (including slight and serious) has been modelled. It is estimated that the impact of any lowering in the blood alcohol limit will actually increase over the first few years of implementation with an estimate of up to 303 lives annually saved by the 6th year. These figures do not fully reflect the additional lives that might be saved in Scotland who make up 7% of the drink drive-related casualties in Great Britain. While there are many uncertainties related to the data and the assumptions used in the modelling, nevertheless, they provide a helpful indication of what might be achieved by a reduction in the current limit. In the light of that, the current 80 mg/100 ml should be reduced to 50 mg/100 ml. The issue of whether to have a lower alcohol limit for young or novice drivers is the most difficult addressed in the Review. Most novice drivers are young, and there is currently a separate penalty point regime for such drivers. It is clear from the drink drive statistics that younger drink drivers create a considerably greater risk than average, both to themselves and to others. It appears that that elevated risk extends to drivers up to the age of 30 but it does not appear proportionate to apply a stricter regime to all drivers for a 6 Executive summary dozen years from gaining a licence.