£100 FINES FOR 1MPH OVER LIMIT

Cop chief demands crackdown

A TOP cop wants a zero-tolerance crackdown on motorists who go even 1mph over the limit.

Drivers can often escape a £100 fine and points at the moment if they are travelling at the speed limit plus 10% plus 2mph.

That means you can drive up to 35mph in a built-up area, and as fast as 79mph along a motorway.

But Chief Constable Anthony Bangham, the national roads policing chief, says in a new report that this lets drivers think “it is OK to speed”.

He warned colleagues: ‘We need to change our messaging and ensure greater consistency of approach when dealing with those who exceed the speed limit.”

Mr Bangham, head of West Mercia Police, told the Chief Constables’ Council that road deaths had increased by 4% in

2016 after falling for several years.

He added: “The existing speed enforcement guidance – in particular the now publicly stated

10% + 2 allowance – could be encouraging driving at these more dangerous higher speeds rather than the actual speed limits.

“If properly understood and applied, the guidance may provide forces with the necessary flexibility but over time rigid application and understanding are often misunderstood, with an expectation that the ‘norm’ is ‘it is OK to speed’.” However, many police believe that such a policy, if adopted, would alienate the public with motorists moaning that they are being treated as cash cows.

Fines for speeding raked in £100million for the Government’s coffers during 2016.

If motorists were fined for going 1mph over the speed limit, the Government could expect to see this figure multiplied.

Celebrity lawyer Nick Freeman – nicknamed Mr Loophole for his skill at getting star clients off speeding charges – last night blasted the crackdown.

He claimed it would create a “toxic distraction” for drivers.

Mr Freeman said: “I have always maintained that it isn’t speed which kills, it is bad driving.” WARNING: Mr Bangham