The Government has announced a new crackdown on those caught driving while using a mobile phone.

On December 20, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) published its policy for prosecuting cases of bad driving. In cases where the driver was avoidably and dangerously distracted by using a mobile phone whilst driving, a charge of dangerous driving will be the starting point for deciding whether to bring a prosecution. In addition, causing death by dangerous driving carries a maximum sentence of 14 years' imprisonment.

The CPS also intends to take further steps if the guilty driver was on work-related duties at the time of the offence. The CPS will ensure that cases involving bad driving in the workplace are reviewed not only to establish whether the driver should be prosecuted for any offence or offences, but also to determine whether there is evidence to show that an offence or offences have been committed by the driver's employer. For example, the employee was directed to answer or make work-related phone calls, or even that the call concerned came from the employee's employer.

The BBC, commenting on the CPS announcement, reports that some employers have started to no longer allow employees to use legal hands-free kits whilst driving. Research by the Transport Research Laboratory has shown that a driver on the phone, even using hand-free kit, is more distracted than one who has drunk as much as the legal alcohol limit. The risk of a crash was four times higher when the driver was on the phone, the study found. Dr Nick Reed, from the laboratory, told the BBC that: "Chatting to a passenger can be distracting, but what we found is that it's less so than having a mobile call."

Copies of the CPS policy can be found at: www.cps.gov.uk/publications/prosecution/pbd_policy.html#33.

Source: Crown Prosecution Service, December 20 2007 (AH)