A Labour government could add 'beyond insane' blanket 20mph limits

A Labour government could bring in ‘beyond insane’ blanket 20mph limits as Wales set to step up its ‘war on drivers’

• Sir Keir Starmer said last year Welsh government had provided ‘a blueprint’
• Tory leader in Wales concerned Labour might lower speed limits in England 

A Labour government could bring in ‘beyond insane’ blanket 20mph limits, the Conservatives claimed yesterday.

Labour in Wales will step up its ‘war on drivers’ tomorrow by making 20mph the maximum on most 30mph roads.

First minister Mark Drakeford yesterday defended the move, insisting it would save lives and NHS resources. But critics point out that his own administration’s impact assessment shows the cost to the Welsh economy could be as high as £9billion.

And penalty fines will hit drivers who already face larger petrol bills for running their engines at lower – and less efficient speeds. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said last year that the Welsh government had provided ‘a blueprint for what Labour can do across the UK’.

David TC Davies, Conservative leader in Wales, warned last night that this suggested Labour might lower speed limits in England if it wins back power.

First minister Mark Drakeford (pictured) yesterday defended the move, insisting it would save lives and NHS resources. But critics point out that his own administration’s impact assessment shows the cost to the Welsh economy could be as high as £9billion (File Photo)

Labour in Wales will step up its ‘war on drivers’ tomorrow by making 20mph the maximum on most 30mph roads (File Photo)

He stressed that he was not against 20mph restrictions outside schools and in other high-risk areas but added: ‘Labour is conducting a war against motorists – and if you want to come and see what life is like under a Labour government come to Wales, but make sure you put aside a lot of time because it will take you a lot of time to travel around.

‘We now have a government here in Wales that won’t be happy unless we’re all travelling around on a horse and cart.

‘It’s beyond insane. We’re trying to attract investment into Wales, and yet people coming into Wales from England are going to suddenly find they’re getting points on their licence, or losing their licence, because they’ve inadvertently done 25mph perfectly safely on a road that until tomorrow was 30mph.’

Tory party chairman Greg Hands said: ‘Mark Drakeford is bringing Wales to a standstill, but this is merely a test case of Sir Keir’s own blueprint for government.’

The speed limit reduction to 20mph will affect ‘restricted roads’ – those with ‘street lights spaced no more than 200 yards apart, usually located in residential and built-up areas’.

Tory party chairman Greg Hands said: ‘Mark Drakeford is bringing Wales to a standstill, but this is merely a test case of Sir Keir’s own blueprint for government’ (File Photo)

Transport is a devolved matter so the Welsh government can make the change unilaterally.

According to its own impact assessment, the ‘main economic dis-benefit’ of the new regime ‘relates to increased journey times from lower average vehicle speeds’.

It states that this could result in an economic hit of up to £9billion over 30 years; the cost of implementing the scheme will be £33million.

Mr Drakeford defended pressing ahead with the move yesterday. He claimed that ‘the evidence is incontrovertible’ that ‘driving more slowly in built-up urban areas saves people’s lives’ and that it will save the Health Service £90million as a result.

He cited a similar scheme in Spain, saying it had cut urban deaths by 20 per cent.

The move comes after London’s Labour mayor, Sadiq Khan, infuriated millions of drivers in the South East by expanding his ultra-low emissions scheme across all of outer London last month. Drivers of older polluting vehicles must pay £12.50 a day to drive in the zone.

Mr Drakeford defended pressing ahead with the move yesterday. He claimed that ‘the evidence is incontrovertible’ that ‘driving more slowly in built-up urban areas saves people’s lives’ and that it will save the Health Service £90million as a result (File Photo)

The RAC’s roads policy chief, Simon Williams, said compliance with 20mph limits was ‘quite poor’ and it would be ‘more effective to target areas where they are most needed’ such as on residential roads or in areas of high footfall.

Reducing speeds to 20mph has little impact on road safety, research by Queen’s University Belfast, Edinburgh University and the University of Cambridge found last year. The three-year study claimed that 20mph speed limits across Belfast had instead cut traffic.

Tory MP Craig Mackinlay said: ‘Wales is merely a test case for Starmer’s plans for government. Labour’s repeated clobbering of ordinary drivers is an attack on the working people they once claimed to represent.’ Fellow Tory MP Steve Tuckwell said: ‘Sadiq Khan is slamming on the brakes across London, bringing our city to a standstill, just as Mark Drakeford is planning to do in Wales. Labour must bring their war on motorists to a halt.’

A Labour Party spokesman last night insisted it was ‘nonsense’ to suggest the party would replicate Wales’s move across England, adding: ‘Local areas know their communities best – that’s why it has been up to them to decide on speed limits, for instance around local schools, for decades.’

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