P-platers given alcohol at event

ALSTONVILLE road safety campaigner Lyndal Denny said it was 'completely unacceptable' that free alcohol was provided to P-plate drivers at an RTA event.

ALSTONVILLE road safety campaigner Lyndal Denny said it was ‘completely unacceptable’ that free alcohol was provided to P-plate drivers at an RTA event.

NSW Roads Minister David Campbell has also admitted providing alcohol at the function was a mistake.

But Ms Denny said that was not good enough.

She has called for Mr Campbell to be sacked over his handling of the Slow Down Pledge campaign, in which people vow they will not speed or get into a car with a speeding driver.

As part of the campaign, 150 people won VIP tickets to a Twenty20 cricket match at ANZ Stadium in January.

This included free alcohol and food.

Ms Denny slammed Mr Campbell for the RTA-sponsored event, and wrote to Premier Kristina Keneally demanding his ‘immediate sacking’.

“I was absolutely stunned to see that they had filled all these young people up with free booze,” she said.

“One girl wrote on the website that she had a great time because she got so drunk.

“And this is happening while the RTA spends billions on anti-drink driving campaigns.

“I will be interested to see how the Premier justifies it.”

In a written statement sent to The Northern Star yesterday, Mr Campbell admitted that providing alcohol at the VIP event was wrong.

“I spoke to the Premier this morning about this and in future no RTA road safety promotions will involve alcohol. I have informed the RTA of this,” he said.

“While everyone at the event was 18 or over, clearly the service of alcohol was not in line with the broader road safety message and we have taken action to ensure it won’t happen again.”

Originally published as P-platers given alcohol at event