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MADD Canada Highlights

Watch this page for updates on MADD Canada's activities.

December 2009

MADD Canada releases Rating the Provinces and Territories: The 2009 Report

MADD Canada is pleased to announce the release of Rating the Provinces and Territories: The 2009 Report, a comprehensive assessment of provincial and territorial impaired driving laws.

November 2009

New Alcohol, Trauma and Impaired Driving Report Available

MADD Canada is pleased to announce the 4th edition of Alcohol, Trauma and Impaired Driving, a fully-referenced compendium of information on alcohol and drug consumption patterns, impaired driving and other related trauma.

The report is a must-have resource for volunteers, media, policymakers, researchers and members of the general public who are concerned with current trends in alcohol-related trauma. The new edition is broader in scope than previous versions, with a significantly expanded section on the Canadian data on alcohol consumption and youth trauma, more provincial and territorial information, and increased coverage of enforcement-related issues.

Alcohol, Trauma and Impaired Driving is jointly published by MADD Canada, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health and the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse.

New Criminal Justice Brochure Available Online

MADD Canada’s recently updated brochure, A Victim’s Guide to the Canadian Criminal Justice System, is now available.

Dealing with the legal aftermath of an alcohol or drug-related crash can be challenging and confusing. This brochure helps victims navigate the legal system by providing useful information on federal impaired driving laws, how cases are processed and the rights of victims and their families.

The updated brochure has been made possible with a generous grant from the Law Foundation of Ontario.

If you are a victim looking for support, please contact Victim Services Manager Gloria Appleby at 1-800-665-6233, ext. 222 or email her at gappleby@madd.ca.

September 2009

New MADD film drives home sobering message
From The Oakville Beaver

If this year’s Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) multimedia presentation was intended to make students fully grasp the consequences of drinking and driving, it seemed to do exactly that.

July 2009

DUI is serious problem, By Robert Solomon, Suzie Chiodo and Andrew Murie, Special to The Windsor Star, July 6, 2009

While former Canada Safety Council president Emile Therien may believe that introducing a new streamlined .05 per cent criminal impaired driving offence is "frivolous," we would disagree. So too would the more than 85 per cent of the world's developed democracies that have made driving with a blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) of .05 per cent or above an offence.
Read more...

June 2009

Is Canada really ‘tough on drunk drivers’?, The Lawyers Weekly, June 26, 2009

The Canada Safety Council recently released a report emphasizing that the penalties under Canada’s .08 percent bloodalcohol concentration (BAC) laws are among the “toughest” in the world. Because of this perceived toughness, some in the alcohol industry, political sphere and the media have argued against introducing a lower federal BAC limit. However “tough” laws do not equal effective laws.
Read more...

MADD Canada Responds to Federal Justice Committee Report

MADD Canada is, overall, very pleased with the recommendations made in the June 18th report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, particularly its endorsement of random breath testing. MADD Canada is disappointed, however, with the Committee’s lack of progress towards a 0.05% BAC in the Criminal Code.
Read more...

Also see: Random Breath Testing – MADD Canada’s Response to Charter Concerns (PDF)

May 2009

MADD Canada applauds Ontario’s revised roadside suspension laws

MADD Canada is dispelling the misinformation about Ontario’s recent revisions to its short-term administrative licence suspension (ALS) program for drivers with blood-alcohol concentrations (BACs) between .05% and .08%.

Under the revisions, drivers with BACs over .05% will receive a 3-day ALS for a first infraction, and a 7-day ALS and mandatory remedial education program for a second infraction. Subsequent breaches will trigger a 30-day ALS, mandatory treatment and a 6-month ignition interlock order.

The changes came into force just weeks ago, but they have already come under fire from some journalists and criminal lawyers. They claim, among other things, that the new provisions will penalize social drinkers.

These provisions will not prevent what most Canadians would call ‘social drinking.’ It takes more than a drink or two for most people to reach a .05% BAC. For example, an average 185lb man who had three drinks, and a 130lb woman who had two drinks, in two hours on an empty stomach, would still be under the limit.

It is also claimed that many drivers would not be at all impaired at .05% BAC. Yet international studies over five decades show that even small amounts of alcohol adversely affect driving skills and performance, which explains why virtually all leading medical, accident prevention and traffic safety organizations in the world support BAC limits of .05% or lower.

Critics contend that approved screening devices (ASDs), which have long been used to measure BACs at roadside, can give false high readings if the driver smoked a cigarette, chewed gum or used mouthwash. However, ASDs are sophisticated instruments that must meet rigorous federal standards. Their readings are not affected by these substances, and their accuracy has not been successfully challenged on these grounds.

Far from being radical, the changes are not especially novel, even by Canadian standards. Ontario has had a .05% ALS since the 1980s, and the changes simply strengthened the existing law. Even still, Ontario’s amendments fall short of the comprehensive .05% ALS model developed by MADD Canada in conjunction with a federal/provincial traffic safety organization. Other provinces – most recently Prince Edward Island – already have many of the progressive features of the comprehensive model, including escalating sanctions and mandatory remedial programs for repeat infractions. In turn, the model is modest compared to the .05% laws in most other countries.

Ontario’s revised .05% ALS program is now one of the best in the country and the province should be praised, not condemned, for this significant traffic safety initiative.

For more information, please see: Ontario’s New ALS Law

April 2009

Letter to the Editor of The Saskatoon StarPhoenix, April 23, 2009

On behalf of the thousands of victims of impaired driving, MADD Canada is appalled at the disgraceful attitudes of bar owners who are criticizing Sgt. Ron Russell for doing his job and protecting the public. Read more...

Impaired driving is a gamble that’s just not worth it, says MADD Canada’s new public service announcement

MADD Canada is pleased to unveil a new public service announcement (PSA) which likens impaired driving to rolling the dice and gambling with your driver’s licence. The new PSA is entitled Tossing the Dice.

"What we’re telling people is when you drive while impaired, you’re gambling with your driver's licence," says Andrew Murie, MADD Canada’s Chief Executive Officer. "More importantly, you’re gambling with your life and the lives of others."

The 30-second spot informs viewers about changes to a roadside suspension law which take effect in Ontario on May 1, 2009. As of that date, drivers with blood alcohol concentrations (BACs) at or over 0.05% will face licence suspensions from 3 to 30 days.

The new law seeks to make Ontario’s roads safer by effectively removing more impaired drivers. On average, four people are killed and 207 people are injured in impaired driving crashes every day in Canada.

MADD Canada is distributing the PSA across the province. "We want to help Ontarians understand the law and comply with it," says Mr. Murie. "Every time we take an impaired driver off the road or someone makes the right decision to not drive while impaired, we are potentially saving a life or preventing a serious injury."

View other MADD Canada public service announcements

March 2009

MADD Canada meets with Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights

On March 2nd, MADD Canada appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights in Ottawa during a session on matters related to impaired driving.

MADD Canada National President Margaret Miller, National Director of Legal Policy Professor Robert Solomon and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Murie highlighted three key issues for the Committee to consider in future studies, proposals and legislative matters it undertakes:

the enactment of a Criminal Code .05% BAC offence;
giving police the authority to conduct random breath testing for screening drivers; and eliminating or reducing the mandatory driving prohibitions for impaired driving offenders enrolled in an alcohol ignition interlock program.

Related information

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