N.Z. blood-alcohol laws ‘backward’

Press, 7 July 1977, Page 6

N.Z. blood-alcohol laws ‘backward’

New Zealand had become possibly the most backward country in the world in terms of drinking and driving legislation, said a Massey University alcohol researcher in Christchurch last evening. Until blood sampling was replaced by random breath testing, it would probably stay that way, said Dr R. D. Batt, head of the university’s biochemistry department. He was addressing the Canterbury branch of the Royal Society of New Zealand. In 1975, only about 14,500 drivers were tested. To be an effective deterrent, about 250,000 tests per year should be administered, he said. The chances of drinking drivers getting caught under the; present system were too re-1 mote. Dr Batt also recommended! that persons under 25 years ( of age, at a stage in their drinking lives when they could more realistically be kept from more severe problems, should have the minimum blood-alcohol level for driving cut in half. He said that Victoria, in Australia, used that level of 50 milligrammes of alcohol per 1000 millilitres of blood tor all drivers, although it did

■ not seek convictions until (the level reached 80mg. I Breath testers could be as (accurate as blood sampling in 'showing a driver had (exceeded the lOOmg limit, but the present “accuracy phobia” prevented them from being used, he added. The Massey University research programme started in 1968. It was witnessing a high and rising alcohol consumption in the country; from 1971 to 1975, the per capita consumption had increased by about 20 per cent. About 9 per cent of the total drinking population, or about 150,000 persons, could exceed the hazardous drinking level. ■ Dr Batt said it was “not unlikely” that the annual (costs of drinking in New Zealland — in terms of accidents, (time lost at work and mediical treatment — could be (from S2OOM to S3OOM. ( An educational programme on the appropriate use of alcohol was needed. For years, the licensing polls had shown a clear mandate for continuance, and the money to run those polls could be better used elsewhere. There should also be more

■emphasis on intensive efforts ■to help those drinkers whose problems were spotted early. There was too much emphasis on “thinking about the whole country, and ignoring the major problem — the young drinker,” Dr Batt said.

Wider attempts should be made to explain how to compute the amount of liquor that could be consumed and still be under the legal limit. Some experts had said that such an approach was irresponsible, by showing persons how to drink to the maximum. But he said the information was needed. Even the blood-alcohol figures used in such charts could only be attained by ("gulp drinking,” he said, and it would be “almost impossible” for heavy beer drinkers to achieve the limit with the number of drinks shown. If they were eating food while drinking, the limit would be much higher. I Dr Batt said the drinking j and driving law was probably : broken between 5M and 10M ( times a year in New Zealand. I Only about one in 500; offences was detected.