- dangerously misguided

According to the Daily Mail, a conference on 'speed' organised by Brake will call for widespread 20mph speed limits to replace urban 30s.

Safe Speed warns that 20mph speed limits are only suitable for special places and small areas.

* Maintaining 20mph requires too much driver attention. This is why the Department for Transport - correctly - requires 20mph zones to be 'self enforcing'.

* Brake is confusing safety objectives and social objectives. This is a dangerous mistake because safety comes first. The risk is that well intentioned policy based on social arguments will kill more people.

* We do NOT have a widespread safety problem caused by responsible motorists driving too fast for the conditions. Crashes involving 'excessive speed' are only about 12% of all injury crashes.

* Average impact speeds are already FAR below free travelling speeds. It is likely that dumbed down driving will provide lower levels of attention and planning and lead to higher average impact speeds.

* Reduced traffic speeds DO NOT give drivers more time to react. Time to react is something that drivers routinely create for themselves with appropriate and effective observation, anticipation and planning.

Paul Smith, founder of the Safe Speed road safety campaign(www.safespeed.org.uk) said: "Brakes proposals reveal a deeply flawed and dangerous misunderstanding of the nature of road safety. Driving isn't a behaviour to be controlled - it is a skill to be nurtured. We have the safest roads in the world because we have, on average, the most skilled drivers.Taking state control of drivers' choices is already slowly but surely deskilling our drivers. I am certain that this is the main reason that we are already 1,000 lives per year behind target."

"Policies like these fail to recognise the true psychological foundation of road safety and would certainly lead to more dead people in the future."

"ISA is the worst of the lot. It will encourage people to drive at deadly speeds trusting the technology to take responsibility. It is absurd to suggest that a speed can be safe because it is posted at the roadside. Speeds are only safe when aware drivers can stop comfortably within the distance that they know to be clear. Even 20mph is a deadly speed if used without appropriate skill and attention."