Police call for roadside drug tests

Police want a new device to test for drug use

Roadside drug tests for drivers should be introduced as a matter of urgency, according to police in north-east England.

Durham Constabulary has called on the government to develop a new detector to test for drugs like cannabis, ecstasy and cocaine.

The call follows the release of figures from the force which showed drugs were found in more than half of drivers killed on County Durham's roads in 2002.

A police spokesman said existing testing methods of detecting drug abuse, including asking drivers to walk in a straight line, are "unsatisfactory".

Fatal trend

Figures released by the force showed that of the 23 drivers who died on the county's roads since January 2002, 50% had traces of cocaine, ecstasy, cannabis or prescription drugs in their blood.

The majority had also consumed alcohol, leading police to warn of a fatal trend in motorists taking a cocktail of drink and drugs.

Durham Constabulary's head of traffic, Superintendent Barry Peart, says the government should introduce an all-encompassing testing device to help tackle what he described as "the massive problem of drug-driving".

He said: "We asked the laboratories to routinely start screening for drugs because we suspected they were becoming one of the common denominators in incidents.

"The findings are far worse than we thought.

"I will be encouraging my officers to be more vigilant in stopping people they suspect to be under the influence of drugs, but we will always be hamstrung until there's a proper test."

No-one from the Home Office was available for comment.