Association survey - strong support for lowering the drink driving limit
A survey of Police Association members shows eighty per cent (80%) now support calls to lower the drink drive limit.
The result came from the Police Association’s members’ survey, conducted in August by the Nielsen research company.
More than 6,300 police officers and employees completed the online survey.
Members were asked: “Do you support or oppose lowering the maximum permissible blood alcohol level to drive a motor vehicle from the current 80mg per 100 ml of blood, to 50mg per 100ml (or its breath alcohol equivalent)?”
The 80% who said they would support the move is up from the sixty-two per cent (62%) support in the Association’s 2008 members’ survey.
Education, discussion and debate
Police Association President Greg O’Connor said the significant increase in support for the measure probably reflected the education, discussion and debate about the proposed measure over the last 12 to 18 months.
“When members were asked the question in our 2008 survey, a firm proposal to lower the adult drink drive limit hadn’t been put forward.
Since then, though, there has been a great deal of debate and discussion about it.
“The massive increase in support, with a corresponding drop in both opposition and ‘don’t knows’, shows police staff – like everyone else – have had the chance to consider the evidence and make up their minds,” he said.
Not surprisingly, the survey showed even higher support amongst Road Policing staff, with ninety-one per cent (91%) support, rural staff with eighty-five per cent (85%) support, and General Duties Branch frontline staff, with eighty-four per cent (84%) support.
Overwhelming support
“This shows overwhelming support from those who, along with other emergency services, are usually the ones who have to deal with the carnage on our roads.
Police officers believe lowering the drink-drive limit will mean fewer alcohol-related crashes, and fewer families to whom they have to break the news that their loved one has been killed in an avoidable tragedy,” Mr O’Connor said.
The survey also confirmed that seventy per cent (70%) of police want to see the drinking age raised to 20 across the board, with another seventeen per cent (17%) wanting it raised for off- licence alcohol purchases.
Only twelve per cent (12%) wanted to see the drinking age remain at 18.
These results were almost identical to those from the 2008 survey, reflecting what Mr O’Connor described as “the well-established belief amongst most police that lowering the drinking age in 1999 has proved to be a failed experiment.”
