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Wednesday 17 November 2010

DfT victim-blaming campaign update

In addition to myself and several other cycling bloggers picking up on the DfT’s backwards approach at road safety, Road.cc also noticed it.  Unlike the rest of us (so far) they have gotten a reply from Mike Penning, the minister “Road Safety.”

“This game is part of a range of educational materials designed to give children the skills they need to stay safe on the roads as they become more independent.

“It is nonsense to suggest that, simply by explaining the consequences of different behaviour, we are attributing the blame for accidents to anyone. I am clear that everyone on the road has a role to play in creating a safe environment whether they are driving, riding, cycling or walking.”

It is easy to get the impression that Mikey hasn’t actually had a look at the site, or if he has it is a long time since he saw the outside world not through a windscreen.

“Tory MP Mike Penning claimed £7,978 in car mileage, although his Hemel Hempstead constituency is less than 30 miles from London.”

Based on the estimates from the BBC, this would place him doing around 30,000 miles per year.  But it is not as if this could possibly distort the minister’s perspective on how much of the burden of responsibility for safety should be placed on motorists…

3 comments:

  1. Putting that into context, the circumference of this planet is 24,900 miles.

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  2. The lazy, bone idle...

    Your ponder in the final paragraph won't be too far from the truth ;>)

    If DfT's campaign is the way educational material is heading, is it any wonder so many kids bunk off school!?!

    Maybe whoever okayed the thing should have a crack at producing a similar campaign to encourage visits to the Dentists LOL

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  3. It is odd that the government seems to have so many advertising types on the payroll who end up producing crap like this using mechanisms better used to advertise commercial products. I'm sure you've seen the various HGV campaign posters run by TfL and the City of London which shock the reader and choose to ignore the actual problem. This isn't why governments exist, they are supposed to interfere in these situations and tackle the root causes of problems rather than trying to place the responsibility on the victims.

    ReplyDelete

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