Figures released today by Department for Transport show that British driver quality is in serious decline. Safe Speed has long warned that this is a direct and inevitable consequence of bad road safety policy founded on speed cameras.

Table 4c of the new report reveals a number of factors which are on the increase. These are driver quality factors.

Paul Smith, founder of SafeSpeed.org.uk, said: "I have been warning for years that Department for Transport has been damaging UK road safety by neglecting driver quality. These new figures show that driver quality is in substantial decline, with clear increases in a number factors that depend on driver quality."

"Fatal crashes with 'exceeding the speed limit' as a contributory factor have increased from 12% last year to 14% this year indicating that speed cameras are not reducing these deaths. This was entirely predictable."

"Just like last year, 95% of all crashes do not involve any vehicle exceeding a speed limit, confirming once more that speed cameras are chasing a small and unnecessary target."

"Road user quality in general and driver quality in particular are the essential foundations of all road safety. While Department for Transport continues to ignore them our roads will not get safer."

"Department for Transport road safety policies have failed according to their own figures. We need a root and branch rethink and major structural changes at Department for Transport - and we need it now.