OVER 70S TO FACE DRIVING BAN – Over 70s who fail mandatory driving tests will be banned from the roads
Over-70s who fail mandatory driving tests will reportedly be banned from the roads under Government plans.
Ministers are also considering reducing the drink-drive limit and handing out penalty points to drivers with passengers not wearing seatbelts as part of a new road safety strategy.
The measures will be published in the autumn. It is set to be the biggest overhaul of road safety laws since Sir Tony Blair’s government passed the Road Safety Act in 2006, which made causing death by careless driving an offence.
Over-70s would have to take a retest every three years under the proposals and could be examined for conditions such as dementia.
The drink-drive limit in England and Wales is also expected to be reduced from 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath to 22 micrograms, which is the current level for Scotland.
It will also be made easier for police to bring prosecutions against those caught drug-driving by allowing them to use roadside saliva tests instead of blood tests as evidence.
Longer sentences for driving without insurance and measures to tackle the use of plates that cannot be picked up by automatic number plate recognition cameras are also being considered.
