Early day motion tabled by primary sponsor Alice Mahon (Labour), on Tuesday, 17 December 2002, in the House of Commons. It is signed by 126 members in total.

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SLEEP DISORDERS AND AVOIDABLE ACCIDENTS

That this House recognises that a significant proportion of all road accidents resulting in death or serious injury is caused by sleepiness; notes the human misery caused by fatal road accidents, which cost around one million pounds each; further notes that at least 1 per cent. of the United Kingdom's adult population has a medical cause for sleepiness; acknowledges the Royal College of Physicians' observation that untreated sleep apnoea sufferers may have driving impairments comparable with other drivers well over the legal alcohol limit; acknowledges that sleep apnoea is readily treatable with a machine costing ??300 which lasts for ten years; notes the research undertaken by the Sleep Centre at Edinburgh university; that shows the cost of treating 500 sleep apnoea patients with Continuous Positive Airway Pressure treatment for five years would be a total of ??400,000 in comparison to the estimated cost of accidents caused by untreated patients with sleep apnoea over the same five year period being ??5,300,000; and calls on Her Majesty's Government to give serious consideration to increasing the provision of treatment for sleep disorders.

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Secondary information

Type

Early day motion

Reference

410 

Session

2002-03

Subjects

Accidents Driving Roads Sleep

Link

View this Early day motion on www.parliament.uk