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A debate has been started in Australia for reducing the alcohol limit for driving in order to alter the driving etiquettes.
A discussion paper was introduced by the Australian Transport Council this week to urge for the reduction of the national alcohol limit to 20mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood. The council cited the example of Sweden, where reducing alcohol limit from 50mg to 20mg, there was experienced 10% decrease in the accidents related to drinking plus driving.
The alcohol limit in New Zealand is 80mg, while than in Victoria is 50mg. There is 13% of concentration of drivers aged 18 to 25 years olds in Vitoria and there 36% of all drink drivers face fatality related to road accidents. (Source: Google Alcohol News, 12/05/10) topnews.net.nz, 12/05/10

Responding to the Transport Committee’s report (England) on drink-drive casualties launched today (Thursday 2 December 2010), the BMA’s Director of Professional Activities, Dr Vivienne Nathanson said:
„While the BMA is pleased that the Committee supports action to reduce drink-drive casualties, we are disappointed that it has not called for a reduction in the drink-drive limit. We disagree with the Committee that a reduction in the limit would send out mixed messages. (Source: Medical News Today, 12/02/10) our Online-Comment: The message of this Committee is very clear: It is dominated by the alcohol industry and ignores all results from the many countries which have reduced their drink-drive-limit. To act like this is a crime as it costs daily more lives on the roads.

The major drink driving initiative launched in Hanoi as part of Global Actions on Harmful Drinking (www.global-actions.org) will be
co-implemented by ICAP and the National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC).
The International Center for Alcohol Policies (ICAP) and Vietnam’s National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC) today launched a Joint Initiative on Drink Driving to be carried out in Vietnam through 2012 as part of Global Actions on Harmful Drinking
Global Actions on Harmful Drinking is the result of a collective commitment made by the chief executives of major international beverage alcohol producers to make a significant effort to address harmful drinking in the 2010-2012 time frame. Global Actions efforts in 18 low- and middle-income countries are currently addressing three critical areas: Drink Driving, Self-Regulation of Advertising and Marketing, and Noncommercial Alcohol. ICAP is the lead coordinating organization for this series of
initiatives. (Source: Alcohol Reports, 11/29/10) icap.org, 11.23.10 Comment: ICAP, the institute of Big Alcohol, gets in contact with governments of developing countries. It’s aim is not to reduce alcohol consumption but to avoid that governments introduce effective measures. At least governments are aware that there is an alcohol problem. Will there be a honest evaluation of results?

On Nov. 17, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declared that the makers of drinks like Four Loko and Joose were not allowed to mix caffeine and alcohol. Many of the comments on various news sites said, more or less, that such a decision would „do nothing“ to stop binge drinking on college campuses.
They were right. While removing alcoholic energy drinks from the market may have been necessary, it doesn’t solve the larger problems.
The real issues, as Derrick Z. Jackson wrote in the Boston Globe Nov. 20, are underage and binge drinking. Far from taking either one seriously, he argued, we encourage them both. (Source: Join Together, 11/29/10)

The accuracy of breathalyzer machines has been hotly disputed since states began to use them in the 1930s, according to Fort Lauderdale DUI lawyer William Moore. Numerous factors can cause false positives or otherwise affect results, such as:
* diabetes, * acid reflux disease, * cigarette smoking, * eating bread, * mouth alcohol, * breathing pattern or hyperventilation, * other reasons Breath testing is not the most reliable method of evaluating the amount of alcohol in someone’s body at a given time.
It also does not measure for any other factor or substance that could cause impairment, such as Xanax or other prescriptions, or illegal drugs, says Broward DUI lawyer Moore. (Source: Google Alkohol, 11/22/10) floridaduilawyer.blog11/21/10

The Social Democrats have proposed that all new cars sold in Sweden be equipped with ignition locks to prevent a vehicle from starting if the driver is intoxicated.
The proposal, presented in the Riksdag on Friday, also calls for buses and trucks to come with the devices as well. According to the party, one in four traffic fatalities could be prevented with mandatory ignition locks.
The party’s traffic committee chairman Anders Ygeman is in favour of the government’s proposal on ignition locks as an alternative to revoking driving privileges for drunk driving offenses.
However, the Social Democrats want to go one step further with even more stringent legislation, including seeking an exemption from the EU that would allow Sweden to introduce ignition locks in all new cars. (Source: Alcohol Report, 11/16/10) thelocal.se, 11/15/10

As of Oct. 31, first-time drunk-driving offenders in Michigan who register blood alcohol levels of at least 0.17 percent will face penalties similar to what second-time offenders have traditionally received in the state.
The Kalamazoo Gazette reported that sponsors of the new state law based their efforts on observations that many of the most severe motor vehicle accidents related to drunk driving involved drivers with a high blood alcohol content and a prior drunk-driving conviction. (Source: Join Together, 11/02/10)

„In August, the Government ruled out lowering the blood-alcohol limit from 80mg per 100ml of blood to 50mg, despite unambiguous advice from its officials that such a move would significantly reduce the number of people killed by drunk drivers. The Transport Ministry says that reducing the level could save 33 lives, prevent up to 680 injuries and save up to $238 million every year. The ‚could‘ is the important word here, of course: the figures are based not on research conducted in this country, but extrapolated from an aggregation of more than 300 international studies and from the experience of other developed countries that have cut the limit… Yet, in line with the Key administration’s policy of never making a move without scenting the air, the Government has gutlessly decided it will wait for New Zealand-specific research before making a call. That will take two years: before the research can even begin. (Source: Harvard World Health News, 10/28/10) The New Zealand Herald, October 24, 2010 Comment: It is unbelievable that there are still some few countries, that keep to the old limit. Those governments should be accused for murder.

Alcohol makers worldwide don’t want Thailand to set a precedent by requiring large, graphic warning labels on all wine, beer, and liquor sold there, the Wall Street Journal (subscription required) reported Sept. 27.
If the Thai government approves the plan, 30 percent of every alcohol bottle’s surface would be covered by a label warning about health impacts. Pictures of diseased livers, a bloody traffic accident, a suicide, and a man hitting his wife have been proposed, along with text such as, „Alcohol consumption could harm yourself, children and family.“ (Source: Join Together, 10/5/10)

Emergency doctors from Britain’s College of Emergency Medicine have called for wide-ranging policy changes designed to limit alcohol-related injuries, The Guardian reported Sept. 21.
The sweeping set of recommendations included a call for minimum pricing for alcohol to discourage use; clearer labeling on alcoholic beverages; better training for bar workers so they can refuse service to drunk patrons; an end to alcohol advertising targeted at young people; and no more happy hours. (Source: Join Together, 9/23/10)