DRINK FIGURES 'DISTURBING'

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33093, 7 December 1972, Page 3

DRINK FIGURES 'DISTURBING'

(N.Z. Press Association) WELLINGTON, Dec. 5. Of drivers tested for alcohol in their blood last year, 45 per cent were aged 25 or under, said the Director of Road Transport (Mr B. C. Campbell) today. “Of the 6649 tests taken during the year, 67 per cent had a blood-alcohol level of more than 150 mg,” he said. “This high percentage becomes even more disturbing when considered in the light of the suggestion made recently by a prominent medical authority that a driver with a bloodalcohol count of more than 150 mg was either an alcoholic, or had an alcohol problem.” Of those tested, 16 per cent were aged 19 or younger, and the tests of more than 70 per cent of them proved positive. “A matter of equallyserious concern is the high proportion of drivers under the age of 25 who had a blood-alcohol level of more than 150 mg. These high levels were present in onethird of the drivers tested who were under 20, and 53

per cent of those from 20 to 25. “It is a tragic fact that a high proportion of accidents and casualties involve our younger drivers,” said Mr Campbell. “These figures show how necessary it is for young people to be educated on the effects of alcohol. They also show that those who supply liquor to minors should have more regard for the possible consequences of their actions.”