Overview
- Police chiefs and the British Medical Association are pressing to cut the limit from 80mg to 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood, bringing England, Wales and Northern Ireland into line with Scotland’s stricter threshold.
- The Department for Transport told MPs it is reviewing motoring offences, including drink driving, within the first Road Safety Strategy in a decade, with publication planned before the end of the year.
- Direct Line polling indicates shifting attitudes, with 58% saying any drinking before driving is socially unacceptable, 61% lacking confidence to drive safely after a drink, and 41% backing a lower limit.
- Rural pub owners warn a tighter threshold would hit trade where public transport is scarce, with some calling the proposal an existential threat to country venues.
- Ministers are also reported to be exploring changes to drug-driving prosecutions, potentially allowing roadside saliva tests as evidence, a move supported by AA president Edmund King.