A Victims’ Commissioner is needed to champion road crash victims and their families, according to a leading road safety campaigner.
Sarah Hope MBE has been campaigning since her mother was killed and her daughter Pollyanna lost a leg when they were struck by a bus that mounted the pavement in 2007.
Sarah has launched a petition calling for a Victim’s Commissioner and told GB News “The reason I’ve launched a petition for there to be a Victims’ Commissioner for road crash victims is because I do not believe that enough has changed even in 17 years since our crash.
“Drivers should have gone to prison for a very long time. What’s the deterrent for bad driving if people are being let off?”
In a discussion with Bev Turner and Andrew Pierce, she continued: “I’ve been in parliament this morning to see a debate hosted by Selaine Saxby MP and my petition was mentioned, my campaigning was mentioned.
“I’m really pleased, that goes to show the Government are listening. But I’ve listened to some really sad stories this morning and there are loopholes in the law that make bad things happen.
“For example, 79% of crashes are caused by people driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. And yet if they are in if that driver is in a coma or not able to give permission for his blood to be tested they don’t have to have their blood tested so they can get away with things.
“It’s all wrong because there seems to be more importance in looking after the perpetrators of these crimes. And what we’re not doing is looking after the victims themselves as they try to fight justice and what road crime needs to be treated as real crime.”
Sarah added: “These criminal drivers are people doing hit and run speeding, holding onto mobile phones. They know what they’re doing. They actually know that they might kill someone or severely injure someone and they’re getting away with it.
“So many laws need to be not just toughened but changed completely and the Government needs to recognise that road crime is real crime.
“Only four lifetime driving bans have been given out in the last seven or eight years.”
The petition can be found here: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/644684
