New UK drink-drive limits explained - and how much beer or wine allowed

New law changes could see drink driving limits cut to one beer or a glass of wine as doctors demand action. The legal limit in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is the highest BAC limit in all of Europe, and has stayed the same for decades.

But now doctors, backed by road groups and motoring experts, have called for a change. Carrie Reidinger, a population health policy advice and research officer at the BMA, said: “We think it’s really important to call on Government to lower the legal [use of alcohol]. This is in line with the approach taken by many European countries such as Ireland and Greece.”

A statement from the BMA said: "Harm caused by alcohol and other drugs, including when driving under the influence, places an avoidable burden on individuals and our society, emergency services, the NHS, and the economy."

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A new report calls for the legal blood alcohol content (BAC) limit to be cut to 20mg/100ml (0.02 per cent) for new and commercial drivers. A further cut would see a reduction to 50mg/100ml (0.05 per cent) for all other drivers.

And there are eventual plans for all drivers to reach the lower 20mg/100ml limit "as soon as possible". This would be the equivalent of a small glass of wine or beer, with a number of motoring groups backing the controversial calls.

Among them are Brake, the Campaign Against Drink Driving, IAM RoadSmart and the College of Paramedics. The BMA highlighted how studies in the United States have shown that reducing the BAC limit from 0.08 per cent to 0.05 per cent is effective in preventing collisions.

Alcohol was detected in between 18 per cent of all deceased drivers and 30 per cent of those tested in 2021, compared to between 17 per cent and 30 per cent in 2014. This suggests presence of drugs in driver fatalities may have increased relative to drink-driving over time.