Drug-driving bill will pass first hurdle - King

Transport Minister Annette King says she is confident she has the numbers to get to a select committee legislation that will crack down on drivers impaired with drugs.
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The Government announced last December it would introduce legislation this year that would make it an offence to drive while impaired with illegal drugs.

A spokesman for Ms King told NZPA the minister expected to table the legislation soon.

She was confident she had the support to get the bill to a select committee for scrutiny, the spokesman said.

The Dominion Post reported today that wrangling between the Greens and New Zealand First meant it was unclear whether the bill would get enough support to pass into law.

It understood the Greens had insisted on a provision being added to prevent evidence gathered during blood-testing of impaired drivers being used for any other purpose including prosecution under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

The newspaper said it was unlikely NZ First would support such a move and that the Government would need the support of both parties to push the legislation through Parliament.

But if National backs the legislation, the Government will not need the support of those smaller parties to get the bill through Parliament.

National's transport spokesman Maurice Williamson told NZPA today that his party had not yet seen the bill so it had not been to the its caucus for discussion.

But the party would support any legislation that helped make the road safer, provided it was based on evidence the measure would work, he said.

Green MP Metiria Turei told NZPA that legislation that took unsafe drivers off the road was very important and the Greens wanted to support it.

But the party did not believe there should be a distinction between legal and illegal drugs.

So, if a driver was impaired for driving because of their use of prescription drugs, they too should be caught in the net.

Under the legislation, if a driver failed a physical test, they would be required to provide a blood test.

If that blood test showed illegal drugs, they would be prosecuted.

If people still drove despite warnings on packaging that their prescription drugs could impair their driving, they too should come under the legislation, Ms Turei said.

"If a person is unsafe to drive they should be off the road."

Ms Turei said the Greens were concerned that because the legislation was only focused on illegal drugs, it could become a "back door" way of getting drug convictions.

Police had powers under the Misuse of Drugs Act "to stop cars, to search them without a warrant, to search the people without a warrant and search bags without a warrant".

"If it (the new legislation) was focused on drug impairment, whether legal or illegal, it wouldn't be a back door way to using the Misuse of Drugs Act," she said.

She had spoken to the Government which said there were "practical hurdles" that would need to be addressed if legal drugs were also covered by the legislation.

It was much easier to test for selected illegal drugs.

"But if the law provides for it, then as the technology developed ... the legal framework would work as new tests became available," she said.

NZ First did not want any provision that could stop there being an additional drug conviction, she said.

She understood negotiations were continuing on the final shape of the bill.

Ms King said last December the Government would create a new offence making it illegal to drive "while impaired by illegal drugs".

The same roadside impairment test used for alcohol would be applied when police officers suspected a driver was impaired by illegal drug use. The compulsory roadside test includes an eye examination, a balance test, a walk and turn test and other similar tasks.

If drivers failed that roadside test, they would be required to provide an evidential blood test and could be charged on the basis of that.

Ministry of Transport figures released at the time showed drugs were suspected in 36 crashes in the year to December 31, 2005. Drugs were proven in three crashes. There were 383 crashes where alcohol was suspected.

- NZPA