My Lords, the annual report on road casualties in 2024 was published on 25 September. Sadly, it detailed 1,602 fatalities and a total of 29,467 people killed or seriously injured. These are awful numbers, but, in the last decade, they have largely plateaued. We are committed to reducing them and making our roads safer than ever by publishing the first road safety strategy in over a decade.
I thank my noble friend the Minister for that helpful Answer. This week sees the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims. For me, this is a deeply personal issue. My brother Magnus died exactly a year ago today, having spent four months in Addenbrooke’s Hospital following a crash between a van and his motorbike. Bedfordshire Police attending the crash failed to collect evidence, failed to pursue the crash, failed to breathalyse the van driver involved in the crash and failed my brother’s immediate family in their ongoing search for the truth of the cause of this crash.
Magnus’s family are extremely grateful to Tim Blackwell, a trustee of DocBike, a growing national charity determined to reduce the number of accidents and victims of motorbike crashes, for supporting them in their fight for justice. Magnus became one of the 30,000 or so victims and the 1,800 or so deaths on the road last year that the Minister mentioned. If these numbers were victims of, say, knife crime, there would be a public outcry and appropriate action taken. So I ask the Minister what specific plans the Government have to significantly reduce these shocking figures?
I am sure the first thing to say is that your Lordships’ House will join me in offering our condolences to my noble friend on the loss of his brother. The road safety strategy will be comprehensive, covering all road users. Measures being considered include improving enforcement, the better use of vehicle data and modern technology, targeted measures for vulnerable road users, including motorcyclists, who are 1% of traffic but, sadly, 21% of fatalities and 20% of casualties, and changes to motoring offences.
My Lords, clearly our thoughts are with the noble Lord, Lord Lennie, and his family, for the sad loss he outlined in his question. As we heard, over 1,600 people die and around 30,000 more are seriously injured on UK roads every year, but this is not inevitable and we should not accept it as inevitable. As the Government develop their new road safety strategy, will they be guided by the internationally recognised safe system principles, which are grounded in harm reduction?
The noble Baroness is right that that international system is a good guide. We recently discussed it in this House during the passage of what is now the Bus Services Act. I can confirm that the Government intend to use that guidance, because it is internationally recognised and successful.
My Lords, our condolences go to the noble Lord, Lord Lennie. In fact, as the Minister said, motorcycle users made up over 20% of all road deaths in 2024, and many of these take place on rural roads and away from junctions. Have the Government considered reducing fatal outcomes among motorcycle accidents by mandating emergency notification technology for motorcycles, similar to the automatic eCall system now mandatory in cars, and will that form part of the road safety strategy?
The Government will look at the use of all modern technology. There has not been a recent road safety strategy and, as the noble Lord sets out, technology has moved on a long way. So we will look at that, because, when an accident occurs, getting help to victims of the accident as soon as possible is obviously life-saving.
Is the Minister aware of the figures in Wales for the reduction in road accidents and road deaths following the reduction of the speed limit to 20 miles per hour? Although that has been controversial in some areas and needs to be adjusted, none the less, if people’s lives —children’s lives—can be saved by such a change, surely that can be studied more broadly, and should not the insurance companies be reducing the premium that road drivers pay for their insurance cover in circumstances where the number of accidents is reducing?
The noble Lord makes a good point. I saw recently some very revealing figures on the reduction of accidents in Wales as a consequence of the imposition of the 20 miles per hour speed limit, although there are other views about its blanket introduction; the Government’s view is that introducing lower speed limits where it is appropriate produces the best result. I do not know about the insurance companies in terms of imposing speed limits, but we know that insurance companies should take note of better drivers and, increasingly, technology enables those companies to know where, when and how people are driving.