So the alcohol limit changed midnight last night in Scotland. So what’s happening this morning… Roadblocks in Glasgow during rush hour breathalising people! So basically looking to catch some poor ■■■■ last night who had 2 pints and forgot all about the change in law and is now over this morning.
I dont condone drink driving but I think that is pretty ■■■■ poor police tactics 
But what better way to get the word across than “200 drivers summoned on the 1st day, bla bla”? Its a much more poignant way of getting the word out that the law has changed, more people will remember those sort of headlines!
And if those “■■■■ poor police tactics” as you called them arrested the nob that could’ve later drove past your school kids route to school, or the pedestrian crossing your Wife/girlfriend was crossing?
There is only one way the law should go in regards to drink/drugs driving - ZERO TOLERANCE!
In no way do I condone drink driving, but the news said 20 deaths a year due to drink driving. I wonder how many deaths a year to drugs and violence and do you see the police targetting drug takers mob handed. Ie ring fence a club or pub and test every body for illegal substances then prosecute them. The synical side of me says there is money in moterists.
They did a massive operation in west Lothian a few days ago. 230 addresses raided for drugs from what I read
Reef:
But what better way to get the word across than “200 drivers summoned on the 1st day, bla bla”? Its a much more poignant way of getting the word out that the law has changed, more people will remember those sort of headlines!And if those “■■■■ poor police tactics” as you called them arrested the nob that could’ve later drove past your school kids route to school, or the pedestrian crossing your Wife/girlfriend was crossing?
There is only one way the law should go in regards to drink/drugs driving - ZERO TOLERANCE!
Yes because that 30mg of alcohol difference between yesterdays old limit and today’s new one was the difference between someone being sober and totally rat faced…
Wake up and smell the coffee man. Its all about being able to bump up crime statistics.
And as for zero tolerance. That can never happen as medicine based products, mouth washes etc contain it
How can it have anything to do with bumping up crime statistics when drink-driving is not a “recordable crime” (i.e. it is not included in the Govt crime figures. If the idea really was to bump up the detection rate for recordable crimes, surely they would go for target their operations on possession of cannabis etc?
ajt:
And as for zero tolerance. That can never happen as medicine based products, mouth washes etc contain it
Germany has a zero limit for new drivers and bus/coach drivers. Scotland is only bringing the limit closer to those in the rest of the EU, the UK now has the highest drink drive limit in the EU. There are several other EU countries with a zero limit for either all or some class of drivers.
50 is still too high, both Scotland and the rest of the UK should really bring it down to 20, there should be no excuse for drink driving.
With any medication you are advised whether or not it is suitable to drive or not and YOU are responsible for what you consume whether it is 3 bottles of Night Nurse or 3 bottles of whiskey.
Using “I didn’t know” as an excuse is no excuse, you can read, so read the label, if it “May cause drowsiness” or contains alcohol (like some mouthwashes for example) then find an alternative product that doesn’t, honestly I swear to god some people haven’t got the barest level of intelligence and or common sense, yet have an inexplicably high capacity of blaming everyone/everything else for their own [zb]ing stupidity!
merc0447:
So basically looking to catch some poor [zb] last night who had 2 pints and forgot all about the change in law and is now over this morning.
Utter crap. If you had a couple of pints the night before you wouldn’t be over in the morning. 5 or 6hrs kip and it’ll be pretty much non-existent in your system.
Quite happy for them to do this. I don’t drink if I know I’m driving the next day, I expect other so called professionals to be the same. However I know that some are incapable of lasting a night without getting bladdered as can be seen at any truckstop with a bar and I don’t want to be sharing the road with these people in the morning.
wheelnutt:
ajt:
And as for zero tolerance. That can never happen as medicine based products, mouth washes etc contain itGermany has a zero limit for new drivers and bus/coach drivers. Scotland is only bringing the limit closer to those in the rest of the EU, the UK now has the highest drink drive limit in the EU. There are several other EU countries with a zero limit for either all or some class of drivers.
50 is still too high, both Scotland and the rest of the UK should really bring it down to 20, there should be no excuse for drink driving.
They wont do that because too many people on 6 figure salaries like a lunchtime drink and they need to drive home a few hours later. They sponsor politicians and therefore make the rules that affect the lower classes without changing the upper classes lifestyles. A glass of claret with lunch is quite acceptable and proper but you cant have beer swigging louts enjoying the same etiquette with their associates
I was told this by my HGV Instructor 20 years ago “No drink for 24hrs between bottle & throttle”.
And it is still working even after all this time!!
A lower limit will hopefully reduce the deaths on the road and this can only be a good thing?
It should be lower and only the UK minus Scotland has it so high!!!
merc0447:
So the alcohol limit changed midnight last night in Scotland. So what’s happening this morning… Roadblocks in Glasgow during rush hour breathalising people! So basically looking to catch some poor [zb] last night who had 2 pints and forgot all about the change in law and is now over this morning.I dont condone drink driving but I think that is pretty ■■■■ poor police tactics
It doesn’t appear to be a resounding success. One they caught !!!
eveningtimes.co.uk/news/u/fi … 1417777358
Or as the Officers says…“appears to be over the limit”, may not be yet lets wait and see 
It is only a matter of time before England /Wales follow suit ,once they see what effect it has in Scotland
I can’t see how you could logically be banned from driving in England and Wales for something which is not an offence in England or Wales. I’m expecting some serious legal challenges to this once the first Sassenach gets hauled up before the McBeak.
the people who have a skinfull and drive will just carry on regardless…the bloke stopping off for a pint after work will lose his licence,possibly his job and all that entails.
skypilot:
A lower limit will hopefully reduce the deaths on the road and this can only be a good thing?
But will it? I have no access to the figures but I’m guessing that those 20 deaths in Scotland involving a drink driver were caused by people over the current UK limit, so lowering that in Scotland won’t make the slightest bit of difference in real terms. If someone has got hammered and decides to drive anyway, they’re not going to think “Och Aye! I’m slightly more over the limit now than I was last week, I’m now 7.5 pints above the limit, rather than my usual 7, perhaps I’ll call a taxi”…they’re going to carry on regardless and the only people being apprehended will be those who have had such a small amount of alcohol that it wouldn’t possibly have any real bearing on the situation but can be prosecuted due to a wider net being cast. I don’t drink myself so have no vested interest in defending those that do but I think that trying to claim that someone who’s had one single pint is a danger is just the same as prosecuting someone for doing 51 in a 50 zone or claiming that a driver who had 8.59 minutes off has gone 38 hours and 59 minutes without rest, which is how the prosecution present it in such cases, but in reality its a load of boolarks.
At the end of the day it wouldn’t bother me one bit if Scotland or the UK brought in prohibition and banned alcohol completely but I just view this change in the law cynically as a means to catch a larger group of otherwise normal safe people, while doing nothing to address the issue of preventing the very small number of people who drink a lot and then drive and cause carnage. The change in the law is targeting the wrong set of people entirely in my opinion. But I happen to think that’s the whole point.
robinhood_1984:
skypilot:
A lower limit will hopefully reduce the deaths on the road and this can only be a good thing?But will it? I have no access to the figures but I’m guessing that those 20 deaths in Scotland involving a drink driver were caused by people over the current UK limit, so lowering that in Scotland won’t make the slightest bit of difference in real terms. If someone has got hammered and decides to drive anyway, they’re not going to think “Och Aye! I’m slightly more over the limit now than I was last week, I’m now 7.5 pints above the limit, rather than my usual 7, perhaps I’ll call a taxi”…they’re going to carry on regardless and the only people being apprehended will be those who have had such a small amount of alcohol that it wouldn’t possibly have any real bearing on the situation but can be prosecuted due to a wider net being cast. I don’t drink myself so have no vested interest in defending those that do but I think that trying to claim that someone who’s had one single pint is a danger is just the same as prosecuting someone for doing 51 in a 50 zone or claiming that a driver who had 8.59 minutes off has gone 38 hours and 59 minutes without rest, which is how the prosecution present it in such cases, but in reality its a load of boolarks.
At the end of the day it wouldn’t bother me one bit if Scotland or the UK brought in prohibition and banned alcohol completely but I just view this change in the law cynically as a means to catch a larger group of otherwise normal safe people, while doing nothing to address the issue of preventing the very small number of people who drink a lot and then drive and cause carnage. The change in the law is targeting the wrong set of people entirely in my opinion. But I happen to think that’s the whole point.
that’s pretty much my take on it
What is daft in the UK is this - a driver gets caught for DD and is allowed to keep driving until the court date
I think the minimum is a ban for 12 months so if the evidential test says over then it should be a ban to start there and then with the court date determining how long it is to last for
This is just another “nanny knows best” law in what is now the Socialist State of Scotland under the SNP! Sturgeon an Co have been on a mission for years now,hectoring us about how much we drink,eat and smoke.what songs we can sing at football matches,–I could go on but its too depressing.In no way would I condone drink driving but the Uniformed Wing of the SNP (Police Service of Scotland) hardly ever catch anyone rolling out of the pub at midnite hammered nowadays so they have asked for this new limit and so will catch otherwise law abiding citizens trying to go about their business the next day! All the idiots who go on about zero limit to make us safer should remember-when you give up freedoms in return for supposed greater safety you usually end up with neither.
ROG:
What is daft in the UK is this - a driver gets caught for DD and is allowed to keep driving until the court dateI think the minimum is a ban for 12 months so if the evidential test says over then it should be a ban to start there and then with the court date determining how long it is to last for
Drink-drive cases where the prosecution relies solely on the Intoximeter reading are normally heard within a few days anyway - sometimes within a matter of hours. It’s normally only the cases where specimens have been sent for analysis that are subject to appreciable delay.
Besides, whatever happened to the presumption of someone being innocent until proved guilty?