A FURTHER cut in the drink-drive limit in Scotland will hit rural pubs and have little impact on road safety, a licensees’ group claimed last week.
The Scottish Government has pledged to cut the limit from 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood to 50mg later this year.
Ministers will make the move under new powers handed to them by the 2012 Scotland Act, which recently received Royal Assent.
But it’s been described as a PR measure by the SLTA, which said statistics show the number of accidents caused by people with between 50mg and 80mg per 100ml of alcohol in their system was extremely low.
Boss Paul Waterson said ministers should be more concerned with punishing those caught who are two or three times over the limit. And he claimed there should be a sliding scale of penalties if the limit is reduced, stating that the sanctions for those caught with between 50mg and 80mg per 100ml in their blood should not be as stringent as for those found with over 80mg.
“This is not about condoning drinking and driving – it’s about where we draw the line,” Waterson told SLTN.
The Scottish Government said evidence across Europe shows lower limits reduce alcohol-related road deaths.
