PC Mark Milton's speeding case will be heard again by Magistrates on Monday. He was previously acquitted by magistrates, but on appeal the verdict was overturned and the case sent back to the magistrates to be heard again.

Safe Speed believes that either verdict will be damaging.

Paul Smith, founder of the Safe Speed road safety campaign(www.safespeed.org.uk) said: "It is a tragedy that this case rumbles on.Whatever the verdict, the world will change slightly for the worse. If Mark Milton is found guilty, Police driving and response will be compromised.If Mark Milton is found not guilty, public confidence in the Police will be damaged."

Briefing on the key issues:=================================

Issue 1: Is 159mph automatically dangerous?

Unlike the other issues, this one has a clear and certain answer. 159mph is NOT automatically dangerous. If we accept a) 'dangerous' is a relative term and b) 159mph would not be particularly dangerous on a closed test track in a suitable vehicle, then the question really becomes: is the environment safe enough to support a speed of 159mph? This is the real issue.

It's easy to make the mistake of comparing the safety of say 70mph to 159mph in some unusual circumstance and conclude that 159mph must be relatively more dangerous. For example the argument might go: 'But what if you had a tyre failure? Wouldn't 159mph be "more dangerous" than 70mph? But a tyre failure at 70mph is potentially extremely dangerous - yet we choose to accept that danger as part of our normal lives. The increase in danger at 159mph isn't that great. It's real but it's rare and unusual. The real danger of speed arises when the speed is unsuitable for the environment. So actually we'd be asking entirely the wrong question.

Safe driving at any speed involves ensuring that the speed is suitable for the environment. A failure to do this increases danger very markedly, and we would correctly term the speed: "dangerous". One vital test of the safety of a speed is to ask if it is possible to stop within the space that the driver knows to be clear.

It's entirely possible for 15mph to be murderously fast, for example in a crowded market street, and equally it's possible for 159mph to carry no special risk and to be properly termed 'safe'.

A driver's primary responsibility to safety is to ensure that his speed is appropriate to the environment.

Imagine, for example, driving faster and faster round a bend. At some speed - a speed which is too fast for the bend - a crash becomes inevitable. We're no longer talking about a once-in-a-lifetime tyre failure - we're talking about a certain crash. The risk due to speed suddenly went off the scale. That's an example of what it really means to drive 'too fast'.

Issue 2: Was 159mph on the M54 dangerous?

There might be information on the video to prove that actual danger was present, but it doesn't seem very likely since PC Milton has already been acquitted in another court. Any clear case of danger should have been picked up by the previous court.

The motorway was probably deserted at the time when the highest speeds were achieved and PC Milton would have slowed down if other road users had been present. Or at least we hope so and expect so.

But to drive safely, you must be able to stop within the distance that you can see to be clear. Since it was apparently dark at the time, we have to ask if the headlights were sufficient to see a clear space ahead. It's unusual for factory-fit main beam headlights to support speeds above about 120mph.

Issue 3: Was 80mph in a 30mph speed limit dangerous?

We don't know. It's easy to picture racing through crowded town streets, but the reality may have been very different. Imagine leave a town area and accelerating to 80mph just before the national speed limit signs in an entirely rural and deserted setting. For a skilled Police driver, such a speed could be safe, routine and entirely unremarkable.

So once again, the safety of the behaviour is entirely governed by the circumstances.

Issue 4: Do we need the Police to be free to travel at high speeds?

Absolutely. We need officers to attend incidents as soon as safely possible.They are trained to drive quickly and safely. Sometimes rapid response will be a matter of life and death.

Issue 5: Is it one rule for them and another for us?

Yes. As a simple matter of fact it is. Section 87 of the Road traffic Regulation Act 1984 grants emergency services an exemption from speed limits under certain broadly defined circumstances.

But importantly we expect equal treatment despite the fact that the rules are different. We expect similar degrees of discretion to be afforded to the public and to Police officers. It's an inequality of discretion that threatens the Police / public relationship. Read on.

Issue 6: What about the Police / public relationship?

These issues seriously threaten the good Police / public relationship because of the different way in which discretion is applied to prosecutions. The Public perception is that the Police receive far too much discretion, while the public don't receive anywhere near enough.

The serious ongoing damage to the Police / public relationship is founded in millions of unnecessary speeding prosecutions - motorists prosecuted for minor speeding offences on occasions when they know with confidence that they were driving safely. Stories of apparently 'extreme' Police behaviour is like a twist of the knife.

Issue 7: What are the consequences of finding Mark Milton Guilty?

If Mark Milton is found guilty the major consequences will be as follows:

- There will be further restrictions and rules applying to Police driving.This will cost lives because Police will take longer to arrive and will be worrying about compliance when they should be worrying about safety.

- These restrictions will probably extend to high speed training. Effectively the Police will in time become less skilled.

- The case will be used to further present and confirm the false 'speed is dangerous' case that is frequently made. The truth is that speed is only dangerous when it is also inappropriate. We MUST focus road safety efforts on achieving appropriate speeds not legal speeds. It would be simple if the two were the same, but they are not.

- If the Police are given their own speed limits as a consequence, criminals will only need to drive a few miles per hour faster than the Police speed limit to escape.

Issue 8: What are the consequences of finding Mark Milton innocent?

If Mark Milton is found innocent further damage will be done to the Police / public relationship, with the following major effects:

- the 'them and us' culture will be extended.- less reporting of crime- Police road safety messages won't be trusted as much- Police won't be trusted as much