Proposals to allow drivers from a wider range of emergency services to break the speed limit in order to save lives have been published for consultation by Road Safety Minister Stephen Hammond.
Police, fire and ambulance services are already allowed to exceed speed limits in the course of their emergency response duties and this is not changing.
The three month consultation exercise will examine the possibility of extending the exemption to other services including those carrying organs for transplant, bomb disposal units and coastguard vehicles.
The consultation will also look at amending road safety legislation so that emergency drivers would be required by law to complete high-speed training before exceeding the limit. But this will not place any additional burden on police, fire and ambulance services which already run an effective voluntary training scheme.
While emergency service drivers are not exempt from the offences of dangerous and careless driving, the current legislation allows drivers in some circumstances to break speed limits legally as well as exempting them from certain traffic regulations.
The Lord Advocate is to refer five cases to the UK Supreme Court for a further ruling as to the scope of the Cadder v HMA decision which was handed down by last October by the Supreme Court. Contact expert criminal defence solicitors in Edinburgh on 0131 557 9151.
New clauses have been added to the latest draft of the Scotland Bill which may permit Scottish criminal appeals to be heard in the UK Supreme Court. Contact 0131 557 9151 for a free initial criminal law consultation.
New figures show that there has been a significant increase in recent years in the number of women in Scottish prisons. Contact McSporrans criminal lawyers for a free initial consultation on 0131 557 9151.
Drink driving case clarifies the scope of Cadder. Contact 0131 557 9151 for a free initial criminal law consultation.
On 22 March 2011, the Double Jeopardy (Scotland) Bill passed its third and final stage through the Scottish Parliament. Contact McSporrans criminal lawyers for a free initial consultation on 0131 557 9151.
A new partnership has been set up to try to prevent crimes against animals in Fife in Scotland. Contact McSporrans today on 0131 225 8813 for free initial advice.
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