Paisley Daily Express Column

Paisley Daily Express Column - 21 July 2010

Safe Driving CLAMPDOWN ON DRINK DRIVERS

Our local Strathclyde Police have been running a crackdown on drink drivers this

summer and early indications show that a high number of people who were

driving under the influence of alcohol have been caught.

Police in our community are worried that drivers are still not heeding the message that drinking and driving will not be tolerated.

Traditionally these campaigns are run around Christmas, but the evidence is that drink driving is still a year round challenge.

It is all too easy to have a drink too many and not realise that you are over the limit.

Strathclyde Police are hammering home a sensible and straightforward message: If you are going for a night out in town and have taken the car, the safest course of action is simply to avoid drinking alcohol altogether and stick with soft drinks.

It is also important to remember that you can still be over the limit the day after drinking alcohol so it is best to wait for a few hours before driving.

As well as being a criminal offence, and one that will be taken very seriously by the courts, drink drivers are putting the lives of themselves and others at risk and for that reason it is entirely unacceptable.

So let’s hope that the efforts of the Mill Street Officers make our streets safer this summer.

RESPECT FOR LOCAL SHOPWORKERS

Whether it’s in the Neilston Road, Causeyside Street, the Paisley Centre or Braehead, we all rely on local shop-workers. So I was very disappointed to read research this week that revealed that violence against shop assistants remains a problem here in Scotland.

USDAW, the union for shop workers, firmly believes that shop workers ought to be treated with far more respect. In recent years it has done outstanding work campaigning for shop workers through its “Freedom From Fear” campaign. It’s a campaign I’ve been proud to support because I agree that abusive or violent behaviour against shop assistants is entirely unacceptable.

Shoppers need to get the message that if they do not respect shop staff then they will be barred from the store or may even face police prosecution.

Shop assistants have the same right as anyone else to work in a safe environment free from the fear of attack.

The small minority of shoppers who are abusive or violent towards shop staff must learn that their behaviour will not be tolerated. So this summer let’s all show our support for USDAW’s campaigning efforts to let shop-workers work free from fear.

THINK GREEN AND SAVE CASH TOO!

On the subject of cars, new research showed that drivers in Scotland could save almost £400 a year on average if they knew more about environmental issues and the new legislation that has just been launched concerning C02 emissions.

It’s still the case that most people who are buying a new car are more interested in the style and the price of the vehicle they are going to buy rather than its environmental standards.

In fact, 3 out of every 4 drivers in Scotland do not know the CO2 rating of their car.

And this means that they are often not making the savings that they could be by purchasing a greener vehicle.

The new research I saw this week showed that the average motorist could save £375 a year in fuel costs by opting for the greenest car in its class, compared to buying a top of the range vehicle.

As a local MP I am very aware of the large numbers of people here in Renfrewshire who are very concerned with green issues and with making environmentally sound purchases.

The environment is everyone’s responsibility and I would encourage all local people to think about how green their new car is before making the purchase. So let’s hope that when they head to the Phoenix or the Renfrew Road to try and buy a new car, they’ll remember the research, save some cash and help do their bit to save the environment.