The British Medical Association (BMA) in Northern Ireland has recommended cutting the maximum blood-alcohol level for drivers from 80mg per 100ml to 50mg, in line with plans to introduce similar levels in the Republic.
The limit should also be further reduced to 20mg per 100ml for novice and newly qualified motorists, the BMA added, echoing plans for learner drivers in the South.
“There’s no such thing as a safe limit and doctors across Northern Ireland urge everyone not to drink and drive,” said Fermanagh GP and member of the BMA’s GP Committee Dr John Porteous. “Ensuring the drink-drive limit is the same North and South of the border will greatly assist in enforcing the message.” The BMA also recommends the introduction of random roadside testing without the need for prior suspicion of intoxication.
Sir Peter North’s review of drink driving in the UK, released last month, calculated that approximately 168 lives could be saved in the first year of a reduced limit to 50mg. The report recommended to the British Parliament that the 50mg limit be introduced.
The 20mg limit for novice motorists in the Republic also applies to professional drivers. “Research shows that inexperienced drivers have more crashes. If professionals driving heavy vehicles make a mistake, this is worse,” former IMO President Prof Joe Barry said.
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