Plea as Cambridgeshire drink and drug drive arrests skyrocket

Police are urging people to remember the devastation and heartbreak caused by drink or drug driving after arrests skyrocketed last month.

Between June 1 and June 29 there were 57 drink or drug drive arrests across Cambridgeshire, which is a 78 per cent increase on May where 32 arrests were made.

The rise follows a series of shocking court cases last year, including when drug driver Luke Norton killed two “utterly devoted parents” after taking cocaine and falling asleep at the wheel.

As a result of a head-on collision, Robert Bateman (36) and his wife Paula Bateman, of Westfield Road, Manea, died at the scene

And on April 19 this year, a 41 year old man from Hedgelands, Wisbech, was stopped in Nene Quay just before 10pm after being spotted driving “all over the road”.

A test showed 96 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of his breath, the legal limit being 35.

Sergeant Mark Dollard, from the Beds, Cambs and Herts Road Policing Unit (RPU), said: “It’s difficult to pinpoint a reason for the rise, however, this month we have seen warmer weather, people out socialising more, the start of the Euros and there has been a further minor lifting of Covid restrictions.

“I’d like to remind motorists of the risks they take when they get behind the wheel under the influence of drink or drugs. Not only do they risk their own lives, but the lives of other innocent motorists.

“Before you get behind the wheel please think – is it really worth the risk?

“I’d also like to remind people that they can help us make the roads of Cambridgeshire safer for everyone by reporting others they suspect of driving while under the influence.

“We have a dedicated hotline and all calls are taken in confidence. One call could save a life.”

The hotline, 0800 032 0845, is available 24/7, and gives people the chance to supply the police with information to help reduce the number of drink or drug drivers on the county’s roads.

For more information about drink or drug driving, the law and the dangers it can cause, as well as the confidential hotline, visit the force’s dedicated web page.