Scotland has revised its drink-drink laws to reduce the alcohol limit from 80mg to 50mg in every 100ml of blood.
Voting on 18 November, the Scottish Parliament voted unanimously in favour of the new law, which is aimed at curbing drink-drive related accidents and resulting costs to the tax payer.
It is estimated that the change will save the Government £800m in costs, with a reduction in injuries, fatalities and drink-related work absences.
Scotland’s decision has also ignited a debate within the rest of the UK about whether to introduce a similar reduction in the drink-drive limit.
Welcoming the news, Chris Broadbent, road safety co-ordinator for Cumbria Road Safety Partnership, said: “The legal limit is now 50mg in Scotland and 80mg for the rest of the UK, but common sense says the lower the better.
“If anyone is impaired by any sort of drug it isn’t a good idea to be driving.”
However, safety concerns and the prospect of offsetting Government expense are just one side of the argument, with the other suggesting freewill should be maintained and that a reduction in the limit won’t necessarily force people to drink less.
Robert Goodwill, road safety minister said: “The UK government isn’t reducing the drink-drive limit as research shows that 40 per cent of drink-drivers caught by the police are more than 2.5 times over the legal limit, therefore lowering the limit would have no impact on these types of high-risk offenders.”
Meanwhile, others believe that Scotland can now be studied to understand the potential benefits to the rest of the UK.
Burton MP Andrew Griffiths said it was important not to “scare people from enjoying life’s simply pleasures”, whilst also stating that “politicians should always be guided by evidence.”
He said: “The decision Scotland has made gives us a real chance to analyse their results, and see if it’s something we as a country should also be adopting.”