UK - Motorists face drug testing within months

[HerrSchnaufer]

Telegraph, By David Millward, Transport Editor 7:00AM GMT 14 Jan 2011

Full article here ... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/8258043/Motorists-face-drug-testing-within-months.html

The Home Office is ready to approve devices which will be used to screen motorists suspected of driving under the influence of illegal narcotics.

In a new move manufacturers will be sent details of the Government's requirements for the machines today.

The use of so-called "drugalysers" in police stations will also pave the way for roadside testing by the end of next year.

It is understood that the first devices, capable of testing for an array of drugs including amphetamines, cannabis and ecstasy, could be in police stations by the summer ...

Continues at the above link.

Raises some worrying questions though, especially for daily drug users.

The use of so-called "drugalysers" in police stations will also pave the way for roadside testing by the end of next year.

- Well, that's not an option which is just screaming to be abused now is it? Sure, seems like a good idea, in principle, but the power to stop and search seemed like a good idea in principle, until we all saw how widely it's abused by police.

Even with streamlined testing, the prosecution still has to prove that the presence of the drug impaired the motorist's driving. This means the law on drug driving is currently in the same position as that governing alcohol before the introduction of the breathalyser in 1967.

However Sir Peter North has called for the creation of a new offence which would make it illegal to drive with the presence of an illegal drug in the bloodstream.

Yay. That's not fraught with all kinds of issues ...

Cannabis users should worry as to whether the machines will be testing for 11-nor-9-carboxy-THC or 11-hydroxy-THC specifically, at what levels those will be set, whether tolerance will be considered ...

Opiate users really have to worry about tolerance here. Presumably to catch everyone, levels will be set as if an inexperienced user with no tolerance had consumed the substance. So what about daily opiate users with huge tolerance?

Their single keep-cravings-at-bay hit would be enough to kill that user with no tolerance, but them driving without their shot would be far more dangerous than driving with it.

Just a flawed piece of legislation which discriminates further against drug users.

 

[stevein7]

Maybe push people from say, mj, to legal highs. Dangerous.

What about codeine, dxm, morphine in legit OTC meds?

Looks like its back to Russian roulette with the latest 'mephedrone substitutes' because I doubt peple will want to stop getting high as the economy goes ever more down the toilet.

And what will happen if marijuana etc are detected in millions of people?
Seeing as it lingers a long time.
No fun, no future, no money, no way.

 

[23536]

What about codeine, dxm, morphine in legit OTC meds?

OTC morphine? That's it I'm moving to the UK.

 

[PwnX]

And what will happen if marijuana etc are detected in millions of people?
Seeing as it lingers a long time.
No fun, no future, no money, no way.

That's my worry. They're going to use this to bust people even if they aren't currently high, there's so much potential for abuse.

And what about prescription drugs? Plenty of people are on amphetamine by prescription (ADHD, narcolepsy, etc). What are they gonna do, haul off everybody who tests positive for speed only to find a prescription when they search their home for more speed? Sounds like a lot of paperwork (thus police time, thus taxpayer money) for absolutely nothing.

 

[slimvictor]

Drug-driving detector is a step closer, say ministers

Police forces in Great Britain are a step closer to having a new device to test drivers for drugs.

Ministers say the so-called "drugalyser" will be used in a police station and will remove the need for a doctor, making the process quicker.

It will take a mouth swab and analyse it for traces of cannabis, cocaine, amphetamines, heroin or methadone.

The Home Office has published the specification for the technology and is looking for manufacturers.

cont at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12188145

 

[7zark7]

Just a flawed piece of legislation which discriminates further against drug users.

This is exactly what it is. It has nothing to do with road safety.


So if you test positive of one of those drugs, then what? What crime have you committed? Driving with a controlled substance in your body isn't a crime as far as I'm aware.

Crime Prevention Minister James Brokenshire said motorists under the influence of drugs "were a danger on the road".

Yikes! I didn't know my morning coffee was putting people at so much risk!

 

[HerrSchnaufer]

This is exactly what it is. It has nothing to do with road safety.


So if you test positive of one of those drugs, then what? What crime have you committed? Driving with a controlled substance in your body isn't a crime as far as I'm aware.

Not yet. Ministers want to change all that though. If Peter North gets his way, it will be against the law to drive with the metabolites for THC in your system.

I'm assuming the punishment will be similar, if not identical to that of alcohol. Seems a bit fucking unfair really ...