As prosecutions and road accidents continue to mount in numbers, the health, safety and environment department are passing on a warning issued by the Police.

Drivers who use their mobile phone at the wheel could face up to two years in jail under changes to motoring laws. The tough new guidelines were issued by prosecutors on 19 April this year. Previous guidelines restricted prosecutors to pursuing only a charge of careless driving, for which the maximum fine is £5,000 along with up to nine points on a motorist's licence and may not result in the driver losing their licence. But under the new rules, drivers could be charged with dangerous driving, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in jail. It is believed that by increasing the penalties, drivers will start to take the law seriously.

Drivers can be charged with dangerous driving if prosecutors decide they were "dangerously distracted" by their mobile phone. Prosecutions will be brought for example if by using the equipment a motorist is judged to have posed a danger to other drivers, such as causing another car to swerve. Charges will be brought wherever prosecutors say using equipment - like a mobile phone or Sat-Nav etc - poses a danger. Under the tougher rules, such transgressions can be treated as seriously as speeding or running red lights - and could even lead to a life sentence if someone dies as a result of an accident caused by a distracted driver.

The same applies to Drivers who fiddle with MP3 players, Sat-Navs or other electronic devices or even light a cigarette, while in charge of a moving car or commercial vehicle.

If convicted, a driver can face a minimum two-year driving ban.

Research suggests as many as many as half a million motorists a day use hand-held mobile phones while driving illegally.  Police now check mobile phone records after road collisions to see if the driver was making a call.

Talking or texting on a phone has been banned for four years but the penalty was only a £30 fine.

In February 2007, the punishment was lifted to a £60 fine and three points on the licence.

But the new rules now encourage prosecutors to charge drivers with more serious offences where it's felt appropriate.

Sir Ken Macdonald QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions stated "This responds to public concern about the dangers of driving while using a mobile phone and this means that a charge of dangerous driving will now be the starting point for this offence, where there is clear evidence that danger has been caused by its use."

Rob Gifford, the executive director of the Parliamentary Advisory Council on Transport Safety, explained "It's not every single driver using a mobile phone while driving who faces jail. It's those few whose behaviour leads them to have a crash when they are using a mobile at the same time. People are being reminded that driving is a complicated activity and it is better to concentrate on driving than talking."

Sheila Ranger, head of campaigns at the RAC, said: "This is for drivers who's standard of driving falls well below an acceptable standard whilst on their phone. We still see terrible crashes where people have been texting and drive into the back of stationary queue of traffic because they haven't seen them."

Prosecutors have also been told they can bring manslaughter charges - which carry up to a life sentence - if a vehicle is deliberately used as a weapon, or if "the standard of driving falls so far below the required standard that there is a serious and obvious risk of death and the conduct of the defendant is so reprehensible as to amount to gross negligence".

Safety Reps may wish to remind driving members of the dangers of driving unsafely and risk of prosecution.

Yours Sincerely

Dave Joyce

National Health, Safety & Environment Officer