Lack of Resources Blamed as Lower Drink Drive Limit Fails to Have an Impact in Scotland

Shocking figures have emerged from Scotland, where a new study has shown that the Government's crackdown on drink driving has had no discernable effect on the amount of road accidents.

In December 2014, the legal blood alcohol limit for drivers was reduced (from 80 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood to 50) with the purpose of making roads safer and protecting the lives of road users.

Now though, research carried out by NHS Health Scotland, the University of Stirling and the University of East Anglia has revealed that the move has had no impact on the number of road traffic collisions on Scotland's roads. A lack of extra police resources, needed for enforcement, and awareness campaigning in the media has been blamed for the ineffectiveness of the measure.

Speaking about the study's findings, Alison Douglas, chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland notes: “Reducing the drink-drive limit was the right thing to do as the risk of having an accident rises in direct relation to the amount of alcohol consumed.

“The safest thing to do is avoid alcohol completely before driving. We need to increase public understanding and awareness of the risks and the limit.”

Think before you drink this Christmas

These are words that are worth keeping in mind during the festive season, as Christmas parties and New Year's Eve celebrations begin in earnest. If you think that you will need to use your car then avoiding alcohol is the best way to ensure the safety of not just yourself, but also passengers, pedestrians and other road users.

Thinking about the effects that your drinking could have for the following day can also be of huge importance. Assuming that you will be fit to drive after a night's sleep is simply not the case, and in fact you could still have an unacceptable amount of alcohol in your blood stream long into the morning after the night before.

So, don't do anything you're going to regret. If you know that you are going to need to drive after a night out then take care to ease off the alcohol or make other arrangements. It could save a life this Christmas.

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