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VINTNERS’ FEDERATION OF IRELAND TOTALLY OPPOSED TO CHANGES IN BLOOD ALCOHOL LEVELS PERMISSABLE FOR DRIVERS

22-July-2009

The Vintners’ Federation of Ireland (VFI) is totally opposed to the proposed lowering of the blood alcohol levels permissible for drivers from 80mls to 50mls.

The Federation warns that any proposed reduction in the blood alcohol levels permissible for drivers from 80mls to 50mls will have absolutely no effect on reducing road deaths and will lead to the loss of up to 5,000 jobs in rural areas.

Padraig Cribben, CEO of the VFI, said: “This will do nothing to save lives. It will drive people to drink in the isolation of their homes with the associated social problems this brings. The real issue here is speed. It would appear that this is a smokescreen to cover up the non-implementation of the speed camera programme throughout the country.”

“We cannot understand how the Government is even considering this measure at a time like this. The current road safety measures are working and we have seen a significant reduction in fatalities year on year in recent times. Any changes would be completely unnecessary and very unwelcome in the current climate. For the good of the country we implore the government to let common sense prevail”, he added.

The VFI has categorically stated that it is very much in favour of any measures that help to reduce road fatalities and injuries. However, proposals to reduce the blood alcohol limit of 80mls will have no real impact on road casualties. It has been shown that where road deaths are linked to drink driving, the blood alcohol level is nearly always in excess of 150mls and not 80mls.

The current legislation is working as the latest statistics show.

•    Recently released Garda figures on random breath-testing indicate that the message is getting through. Those tested at checkpoints and found to be over the limit has fallen from 2% in 2006 to just 0.5% today. Eddie Rock, assistant commissioner in charge of road traffic, stated: “This is the first real indication that there’s a serious improvement in attitudes to drink driving”

•    The Road Safety Authority (RSA) itself accepts this broad principle in its report to the Minister in 2008, stating: “The research on reducing the level further from 0.8 to 0.5 has not seen the expected decline in alcohol related collisions”

•    The RSA report also states that: “Drivers with Blood Alcohol Levels in the range of 50 to 80 display few, if any, of the classic signs and symptoms of intoxication”

•    The report goes on to explain that, in the vast majority of cases, in which fatally injured drivers were found to have had alcohol in their systems, the Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) levels were above even the highest of the legal limits

Considering these facts, the VFI sees no benefit in reducing the current blood alcohol level for drivers and this move makes no sense. The psychological impact this will have on rural communities will be huge. 

This measure will only serve to criminalise people who may have one drink on their way home or a glass of wine with dinner and will make people in rural areas even more reluctant to leave the house.

This will have a devastating effect on a rural pub trade already experiencing well documented difficulties.

We estimate that up to 5,000 jobs could be lost as a result of pub closures in this scenario, putting a tremendous extra financial burden on the state to the tune of €100m annually in increased social welfare payments.

Speeding Not Drink Driving Is the Big Killer

While once again underlining its support for measures to reduce road carnage, the VFI highlights the fact that the biggest contributory factor to deaths on our roads today is speeding, not drink driving. The VFI fully endorses the recent comments made by the Chairman of the Road Safety Authority, Gay Byrne, to this effect.

The focus needs to be on tackling and changing the culture of speeding, particularly among young males, and this is the biggest challenge facing the Government. This will only be achieved by strict enforcement of the speed limits and also by raising the awareness of young drivers through educational campaigns.  

The VFI believes the measures proposed by the Government in relation to Blood Alcohol Levels for drivers are completely unnecessary and potentially extremely damaging to the economy and so call for no change to the current legislation.