Breath testing looms for the drunken sailor

Splicing the mainbrace looks like joining weavils in biscuits and walking the plank as part of the maritime past. The Government says that laws are needed to bring seafarers into line with motorists and train drivers and the consultation document issued by the Department of the Environment, Transport, and the Regions (DETR) proposes breath tests for all sailors in coastal and inland waterways whether they are naval, merchant, or simply out in the Mirror dinghy.

There are more than two million users of leisure craft who would be affected by the measure. Drivers of speedboats, who are subject to far fewer regulations in the United Kingdom than in most continental countries, and jet-ski riders, who pose an increasing problem in crowded waters, will be breathalysed if there is suspicion that they are over the limit. Owners of larger yachts might feel particularly targeted: the tradition of convivial entertaining on board is longstanding. There are more practical restraints on sailors racing a Laser.

The DETR consultation paper says it is time to make "drink-sailing" a criminal offence and that the police should carry out the breath-tests on captains and crew members suspected of being drunk. Anyone over the limit could be fined and banned from sailing. Random tests are not likely to be introduced. Initial reactions from yachtsmen were not favourable. Whilst most felt that breath-tests for shipping was a reasonable proposition, there were objections to breathalysing people using small sailing boats.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, James Stevens, of the Royal Yachting Association, said: "This is totally unnecessary. The great pleasure of yachting is getting on board and opening a bottle of wine. There are a few idiots who take boats out when they are drunk but breath-tests will not stop them. People may think that we are a bunch of yellow-wellied, gin-swilling toffs but the vast majority of yachties are responsible and we take safety seriously. Most harbours already have bye-laws that ban anybody taking out a boat while under the influence of drink. That system works very well. We don't need national laws."

Some sailors argue that breath-test laws would be unenforceable. One is quoted as saying: "It's very hard to catch a boat at sea - a motor boat might be doing 50 knots. And it would be expensive to have police patrols everywhere. Who would pay for it?" However, it is unlikely that even the most landlubberly of ministers envisage police launches hailing yachts under sail and requesting that they "pull over". The proposed measures are aimed primarily at commercial shipping and presumably would only be used against leisure craft users when involved in an accident. Anyone who has been caught by the wash of a speedboat or alarmed at the basic skills of a jet-ski driver will welcome anything which increases the safety of water users.

A spokesman for Numast, the seafarers' union, said that the shipping industry had introduced strict rules on drinking, including pre-employment screening and random tests in recent years. He said: "The idea of the drunken sailor is a myth. We don't need new laws but we will go along with them." It is nevertheless the case that problems with alcohol abuse often arise among sailors who can be on board ship for lengthy periods with only routine duties to perform.