Lord Pickles
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Road Injuries and Deaths
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Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Lab Co-op)
It is the turn of the Conservative Benches.
Lord Pickles (Con)
My Lords, I also express my condolences to the noble Lord.
The Minister will be aware that yesterday in Australia it was announced for the first time that the number of road deaths caused by taking drugs exceeded the number of deaths caused by drink-driving. Given that, since 2013, the number of deaths caused by taking illegal drugs has increased by 70%, it is a matter of time before we get to that position. Will the noble Lord commit to the same kind of campaign that was waged over a generation to reduce deaths by drinking, by ensuring that people who take drugs have a certainty of being caught?
Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill (Lab)
I was not aware of the recent Australian statistic, but frankly the noble Lord makes a good point and I am not surprised. To address this increase in drug-driving casualties over the last decade, which is manifesting itself increasingly every year, the Government intend to use the THINK! campaign and is finalising a new drug-driving campaign to launch later this year.