Respond to the motoring offences consultation

Guide to responding

In July 2019, Ryan Saltern, a father and postman, was walking to a party along the single-track B3267 in Cornwall when Wayne Shilling drove into him in the middle of the road, dragging his body for 18 metres.

Shilling, who had been drinking at St Teath carnival, faced a choice. Call the police with alcohol in his system and face a lengthy prison sentence for dangerous driving, or go home and sober up before they found him.

He fled the scene.

Shortly afterwards, Ryan’s body was hit by another vehicle, but the driver stopped and called the emergency services. Sadly, however, Ryan died of catastrophic head injuries at just after midnight on 28 July 2019.

Speaking in a Parliamentary debate in November 2021, MP Christina Rees said: “The forensic investigation proved it was the failure to stop that caused the injuries relating to Ryan’s death.”

Shilling, reported to the police by his own father, was identified 36 hours later. By then, his blood test proved negative for alcohol, and it was too late for a toxicology test.

Shilling’s four-month jail sentence was suspended for a year after he admitted failing to stop. He also received a 12-month driving ban and four-month evening curfew, and was ordered to pay £207 in victim surcharge and costs.

Ryan’s father told MailOnline: “It is a life sentence for us for the rest of our lives. Why should people be walking free having killed someone with a car? This is a life taken away, not a broken wing mirror.”

Why should people be walking free having killed someone with a car? This is a life taken away, not a broken wing mirror

A trivial price for taking a life

Sadly, this is just one example that we highlighted in our 2021 failing to stop report.

If someone hits a cyclist and drives away, leaving them lying injured at the roadside, should they receive the same low penalty as someone who drives off after denting a parked car?

Of course not. But right now, that’s the legal reality. Both fall under the same offence of failing to stop, and carry a maximum custodial sentence of just six months. A trivial price to pay for taking someone’s life.

If a driver has alcohol or drugs in their system when they hit someone, it creates an incentive for them to flee and take the lesser charge of failing to stop, rather than risking a dangerous driving conviction.

But even for those convicted of causing death or serious injury by dangerous driving, there’s no guarantee they will be taken off the roads. It’s far too easy for people to escape driving bans and be back posing a risk to other road users the next day.

Now we have a chance to fix that.

Tougher penalties for driving offences

The UK Government is consulting on proposed tougher penalties for driving offences. These include changes that you have helped us call for over many years, including:

• Lowering the drink driving limit
• Greater penalties for hit-and-run offences
• Increasing the use of driving bans

Most of the proposed changes would apply across Great Britain. Some would only apply in England and Wales, as specified in the questions.

By supporting these measures in the consultation, you can ensure that dangerous driving has consequences and make our roads safer for people cycling.

To help you respond, we have picked out the questions most relevant to keeping cyclists safe and provided suggested answers.

Guide to responding

Tackling drink and drug driving

England, Wales and Northern Ireland currently have the highest drink-drive limits in Europe.

Public communication campaigns over the years have successfully reduced the proportion of people who think it’s acceptable to drink and drive. But the blood alcohol limits themselves haven’t changed since 1969.

The Scottish Government reduced the limit from 80mg to 50mg per 100ml of blood in 2014, and the Northern Ireland Executive is implementing similar changes. It’s time England and Wales followed suit.

Stopping offenders from driving

Someone arrested on suspicion of a firearms offence would automatically have their weapon seized and any firearms licence suspended. Why do we treat driving licences differently?

As we found in our 2021 case study report, many people who appear in court for driving offences already have previous driving convictions.

Kurtis Dean Britland, 26, was described by Derbyshire Roads Policing Unit as a “prime example” of the “system falling down”. The offender, they said, had been banned for drug driving in spring 2018, then provided another positive drug sample while awaiting a court appearance.

They’d just caught him driving while disqualified again. Later that same September, Britland drove at his girlfriend following an argument, wedging her between two vehicles.

Someone under investigation for killing or seriously injuring someone by dangerous driving should be suspended from driving to prevent anyone else getting hurt. Greater use of vehicle seizure by police would also protect the public and act as a powerful deterrent.

Don’t miss your chance to respond

Cycling UK members and supporters can play a crucial role in influencing government policy on road safety.

When the Road Safety Strategy was published in January, the one thing it didn’t mention was any plan to promote the Highway Code updates from 2022. You jumped into action: almost 1,500 of you wrote to your MPs asking about better communication of the Highway Code.

Within a couple of weeks, 18 MPs had asked questions about it in Parliament, and the minister agreed that it needs more work. We’re continuing to press the government on this issue.

This is your chance to have an impact again. Grab a cup of tea, download our suggested responses, and have your say before the consultation closes on 11 May.

Guide to responding