PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY My eye was caught by the headline "Drivers
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face ban for a half-pint of bitter" (CM25-31 January). I was somewhat shocked to read that an alcohol limit of 0.2mg of alcohol per mg of blood would impinge on a lorry driver's right to drink seven pints from 20:00hrs and still drive at 5:30hrs the following morning.
If this is the sort of example of drivers' behaviour that is meant to convince legislators that the road haulage sector is staffed by conscientious professionals then it's little wonder that the influence of the sector's lobbying is not taken very seriously.
Speaking as an individual citizen I, for one, do not wish to have intoxicated (or heavily hung over) people in charge of 40-tonne lorries or school buses on the same road as myself. I am sure that this view is held by the overwhelming majority of the public.
Readers should be reminded that air crews have a total alcohol ban for 24 hours in advance of ajourney—I'm sure nobody is lobbying for them to have the right to have a skinful before flying.
Your article also showed a certain factual ignorance of the working of the European Parliament since, while the EP may make recommendations on any subject it likes, it does not have the right of initiative to bring forward legislative proposals on its own.
Robert Allison,
European Commission, Directorate General for Transport—road transport division, Brussels.
• Thank you for your comments. It has never been Commercial Motor's position that any professional driver would be wise to imbibe large amounts of alcohol the night before work. The article in question merely tried to demonstrate the dangers of drinking quantities which some would assume safe, given the time elapsed between drinking and driving. The story also made it quite clear that the lower limit was only an EP proposal.