Shrewsbury MP hosts launch of road safety charter
A road safety charter demanding “the very highest standards of support” for everyone affected by road death and serious injury has been launched with the “staunch and wholehearted” backing of Shrewsbury's MP.
“I was so very glad to host an event this week at Portcullis House in Westminster for BRAKE, the excellent road safety charity, to officially launch their road safety charter,” said Shrewsbury MP Julia Buckley.
“We were able to listen to the experiences of bereaved families which was very humbling, and we were able to raise awareness among MPs and Ministers for the charity’s call for essential action for everyone affected by road death and serious injury.
“Sadly, road deaths and serious injuries in the UK show no significant signs of reduction, and every year more and more families need support to deal with the devastating impact that road crashes have on their lives.
“Last week I had the honour of meeting Crystal Owen, the mother of Harvey, one of the four young students from Shrewsbury who lost their lives last November after the car they were travelling in crashed during a camping trip in Snowdonia.
“Crystal and I attended a meeting with roads minister Lilian Greenwood and Secretary of State for Transport Louise Haigh to discuss Crystal’s campaigning and to speak about Labour’s Road Safety Strategy. Extraordinary campaigners like Crystal are doing a fantastic job in keeping road safety concerns high on all our agendas.”
The new charter from BRAKE includes a call for the Government to establish national standards in post-crash response, and commit to extending the rights set out in the Victims’ Code to those impacted by road harm, regardless of where they live or whether a crime has occurred.
Mrs Buckley added: “The charter has been written in collaboration with bereaved families, trauma consultants and professionals from across the criminal justice and medical sectors, and it has my staunch and wholehearted support.”
