Drug-driving 'alarmingly common', police warn

More people have been caught driving under the influence of drugs than alcohol over the festive period, police said

Cases of suspected drug-driving have outstripped suspected drink-driving so far in December.

Thames Valley Police (TVP) and Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary arrested 138 people on suspicion of drink-driving and 149 on suspicion of drug-driving between 1 and 19 December.

Insp Simon Hills, from TVP's roads policing team, said more people "seem to feel that it's appropriate or that it's socially acceptable to take drugs and drive" but the punishment - and potential impacts - were the same as drink-driving.

The two forces have teamed up for Operation Holly, an annual drink and drug-driving enforcement campaign over the festive period.

Insp Hills said drug-driving was "alarmingly common", with one in three drug tests completed following a collision in December 2022 coming back positive - compared to one in 10 breath tests for alcohol.

"People should be under no illusion," he said.

"If you are caught drug-driving, it's the same punishment as drink-driving and the impacts of the collisions can be exactly the same."

He said in the run-up to Christmas, drink and drug-driving increases because people socialise more - especially people who "aren't used to drinking the volumes they do".

But he also said attitudes towards it needed to change, with both drink and drug-driving being seen as "socially acceptable" in some instances.

"There is still unfortunately, among society, an acceptance that this happens," he said.

He urged anyone who knows someone who drives after drinking alcohol or taking drugs, but does not want to report them to the police, to "at least speak to them".

The impacts of impaired driving can be far-reaching and lifelong, Insp Hills said.

"There are families within Thames Valley that will be grieving today following an incident involving an impaired driver decades ago," he said.

He said the impact affects officers, victims, families and witnesses, and could be even more devastating at this time of year.

"There's an impact on families when somebody dies in a collision... where we're going round at Christmas to break that news to them," he said.

"That is going to have an impact on every single Christmas forevermore."