National policy inaction on booze continues to kill

Drink limit delay 'callous' says critic
The Government has been accused of "backing legal drunk driving" by ignoring official advice and delaying lowering the drink-driving limit.

Last month the Government announced it would wait for New Zealand-specific research over the next two years before deciding whether to lower the blood alcohol limit from 80mg per 100ml of blood to 50mg (0.08g to 0.05g).

Papers obtained under the Official Information Act showed lowering the limit was the best action to reduce the number of people killed by drunk drivers.

The Transport Ministry said reducing the level could save 33 lives, prevent up to 680 injuries, and save up to $238 million every year.

Professor Jennie Connor, from the University of Otago, said Prime Minister John Key and Transport Minister Steven Joyce needed to explain why they were prepared to sacrifice the lives of New Zealanders and the dollars in social costs each year.

The experts are now attacking this decision like they are lining up to attack National Standards, as Professor Jennie Connor notes, National need to explain why National are not implementing social policy that will save 33 lives, prevent 680 injured and save us $238million.

The National Party online apologist mouthpiece, the ever climate denying Kiwiblogh runs the spin lines that we need more evidence, anyone working in the field laugh at that, we have the evidence and it suggests lowering the blood alcohol levels will save 33 lives, prevent 680 injuries and save $238million.

The reasons why National are not lowering the alcohol blood levels are two fold, the first is the massive pressure National folded under from the booze industry itself and the second is that after all the political capital spent by National on creating the Nanny State, they are terrified to challenge their main voting block, older blokes who currently are allowed to drive drunk legally after 7 drinks and whom would be told on the 4th drink that they were now over the limit. That older bloke voting block is core National Party and invading their world of booze with 'nanny state' limitations requires a courage this Government simply don't have.

Watching National fail to implement social policy that will save 33 lives, prevent 680 injuries and save $238million because of their Nanny State politically correct bogeyman is just another reason to hold the Government in contempt.

Ugly. Very ugly.