Police release Christmas drink drive figures

Dozens of drivers didn't listen to Cheshire Constabulary's advice during the festive period and put themselves and others at risk through alcohol.

Between 1st December and 1st January Cheshire police arrested 181 people for drink driving and 7 drivers tested positive for drugs.

Throughout the Christmas period police highlighted the dangers of excessive drinking and the impact it can have on people having a night out with their ′The Good, The Bad and The Ugly′ campaign which delivered hard hitting messages.

Assistant Chief Constable Janette McCormick commented: "People are not listening, they are not accepting that excessive drinking can cause Bad and often Ugly behaviour. This can be evidenced by the number of alcohol related anti-social behaviour incidents recorded over the festive period."

This year saw incidents of anti-social behaviour that have alcohol as an influencing factor rise to 692, compared with 586 incidents during the same period last year.

In Cheshire, officers where called to deal with drunken brawls, drunks who were passed out and domestics that had escalated because those involved had been drinking.

On top of dealing with these incidents, officers and staff were investigating crimes where victims and offenders had little or no recollection of what had happened because of the amount they have had to drink.

ACC Janette McCormick added "The Ugly truth is, some people are still not getting the message about the dangers associated with excessive drinking. They need to understand the damage alcohol can do to their bodies, the dangers and risks it poses on our streets, how it influences themselves and others around them as well as how they can be at risk of becoming a victim of crime.

"This is a problem that we face all year round, the emergency services can not pack away their Christmas memories as officers and staff will face the same problems on the streets this Friday and Saturday night where alcohol is the root cause of many of the incidents and crimes they will be called to deal with this weekend, my question to those who are reading this is − is this acceptable?"