Plan to slash drink-drive limit

The legal alcohol limit for driving could be lowered by almost half under plans being considered by the Government, it was revealed today.

A report on driving under the influence of drink or drugs has been submitted to the Department for Transport. It was commissioned last December when Labour was in power, but is now being studied by Tory Transport Secretary Philip Hammond.

Sir Peter North, an academic and Government adviser behind the report, recommends reducing the drink-drive limit by almost half, from 80mg of alcohol per 100ml to 50mg.

That could be less than a single glass of wine or pint of strong beer.

Those found breaking the law would be hit with an automatic 12-month ban. It is also thought Sir Peter has called for random breath-testing, allowing police to stop motorists with no other aim; the right for drivers to demand a second breathalyser test at the police station to be removed; novice drivers to face an alcohol limit of just 20mg and a new offence of driving with an illegal substance in the bloodstream at levels deemed impairing.

Women

Some estimates suggest that a single glass of wine or pint of strong beer can leave some people, in particular women, with a blood-alcohol level above 50mg.

However, Sir Peter is said to have advised that a 50mg rule would still allow many people to consume two drinks without exceeding the limit.

The 80mg limit has been in place since the introduction of the breathalyser more than 40 years ago.

Almost 400 drink drivers were caught by police on roads in the West Midlands during the last crackdown at Christmas. Overall, drink and drug related crashes in the region were down 1.5 per cent during the campaign.

Meanwhile, every driver involved in an accident on West Midlands roads will automatically be breathalysed as part of a summer crackdown on drink driving to coincide with the World Cup.

By Simon Stone