Speed penalty point plan attacked

The existing flat rate for speeding is three points and a £60 fine

Plans to increase penalty points for speeding motorists could "criminalise" a large section of the UK's workforce, driving instructors have warned.

The Driving Instructors Democratic Union said the government proposals could also lead to many people losing their jobs.

Richard Grindrod of the union said the plan needed more consideration.

He called for more speed patrols and clearer road signs as a better way of changing bad habits.

Under the plans, people driving at 45mph or above in a 30mph limit could receive a fixed penalty of six points and a £100 fine.

Those caught doing 70mph in a 50mph zone or 94mph in a 70mph zone would face the same sanction.

Doubling penalty points could have the effect of causing many of them to lose their jobs Richard Grindrod

The existing flat rate for speeding is three points on a licence and a £60 fine.

The Department for Transport is launching a consultation within the next few months, with the findings expected next year.

But Mr Grindrod said there were other ways of dealing with the problem of speeding motorists.

"Drivers forced to take speed awareness courses after a first speeding offence are generally fairly typical motorists," he said.

"Doubling penalty points could have the effect of causing many of them to lose their jobs, with a devastating impact on their families and also on industry and the economy.

"Good policing, better intelligence and planning from local authorities in designing speed enforcement systems must play a major part in solving the speeding problem."

The union also called on the government to introduce better road knowledge education in schools, to re-educate drivers for any first motoring offence and to confiscate vehicles of persistent offenders.

The government has a target of reducing deaths and serious injuries on the roads by 40% by 2010 compared with the average figure for the mid-1990s.