Driving under Influence
(asked on 4th December 2014) - View Source
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of drivers were disqualified from driving for drink-driving offences in each year since 2010; how many and what proportion of drivers have been disqualified from driving due to drink-driving offences; and what the average length of a disqualification from driving for drink-driving offences was in (a) 2010 and (b) 2014.
Driving offences can have very serious and sometimes devastating consequences for victims and their families. That is why the Government is reviewing driving offences and penalties
The number of people sentenced for drink driving offences, the number disqualified and the proportion disqualified from driving from 2010 to 2013 can be viewed in the table below.
| Offenders sentenced for drink-driving offences(1) and number and proportion disqualified from driving, England and Wales, 2010 to 2013(2)(3) | |||||||||
| 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | ||||||
| Sentenced | 53,359 | 50,376 | 50,225 | 47,894 | |||||
| Disqualified(4) | 51,146 | 48,359 | 48,140 | 45,415 | |||||
| Proportion disqualified | 95.9% | 96.0% | 95.8% | 94.8% | |||||
| (1) Includes the following offences under the Road Traffic Act 1988: | |||||||||
| Driving or attempting to drive a mechanically propelled vehicle whilst unfit to drive through drink or drugs - Drink | |||||||||
| Being in charge of mechanically propelled vehicle whilst unfit to drive through drink or drugs - Drink | |||||||||
| Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle while having a breath, blood or urine alcohol concentration in excess of the prescribed limit | |||||||||
| In charge of a motor vehicle while having a breath, blood or urine alcohol concentration in excess of the prescribed limit | |||||||||
| Failing without reasonable excuse to provide a specimen of breath for a preliminary test | |||||||||
| Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle and failing to without a reasonable excuse provide a specimen for a laboratory test or 2 specimens for analysis of breath | |||||||||
| In charge of a motor vehicle and failing without reasonable excuse to provide a specimen for a laboratory test or two specimens for analysis of breath | |||||||||
| Failing to allow specimen of blood to be subjected to laboratory test: a) driving or attempting to drive, b) all other cases. | |||||||||
| (2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. | |||||||||
| (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. | |||||||||
| (4) Includes those disqualified outright and excludes those only disqualified under the penalty points system (under section 35 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988). | |||||||||
The Ministry of Justice Court Proceedings Database holds information on defendants proceeded against, found guilty and sentenced for criminal offences in England and Wales. This database holds information on offences provided by the statutes under which proceedings are brought but not the specific circumstances of each case. This centrally held information records the period of disqualification into one of thirteen bands. As the exact length of driving ban is not available, it is not possibly to identify the average length of a disqualification from driving. This detailed information may be held on the court record but due to the size and complexity is not reported centrally to the MOJ. As such, the information requested can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.