Boxing Day fatal crash: Gov’t considers tougher action after horror road toll
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the government is “looking at all options” to make the state’s roads safer following calls for life bans and mandatory jail terms for disqualified drivers.
NSW
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NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the government is “looking at all options” to make the state’s roads safer following calls for life bans and mandatory jail terms for disqualified drivers.
Ms Berejiklian yesterday has announced NSW drivers will now be tested for cocaine and the number of roadside drug tests each year will double from 100,000 to 200,000 by 2020.
It comes after calls in The Saturday Telegraph by motoring experts, doctors and victims’ groups for radical action to stop serial offenders like Craig Whitall from getting behind the wheel in the wake of a horror Boxing Day crash that killed Lars, Vivian and Annabelle Falkholt.
Whitall, who was affected by methadone when the crash occurred, had served six jail sentences for continuing to drive while disqualified but got his licence back in December 2016.
When pressed on whether the government would also support legislation around life bans and mandatory jail terms for disqualified drivers, Ms Berejilian said she was “not ruling anything out”.
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“Unfortunately there are others who keep reoffending and of course we’ll continue to look at any option which makes our roads safer,” Ms Berejilkian said. “We’re not ruling anything out but at the same time we want to make sure that anything we introduce is meaningful and results in positive outcomes.
Driver who hit Home And Away star and her family was a serial traffic offender
“If there’s more we need to do to keep the community safe when it comes to road transport, of course we will do that ... if the facts present themselves that we need to do more, we will do that.”
Home and Away actor Jessica Falkholt was last night still critical four days after her life support was turned off.
Roads Minister Melinda Pavey said an interagency working group would be created to tackle the issue of people driving under prescribed medications such as methadone, valium and codeine.
“There is an onus of responsibility on the individual and on medical practitioners to ensure motorists aren’t affected by prescribed medications and methadone is a prescribed mediation,” she said.