New drink drive proposals published by the Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar, will see limits drop to just 20mg per 100ml of blood for truck drivers.

The Road Traffic No 2 Bill, will also introduce mandatory breath testing at the new limits, which will see the general limit reduced to 50mg per 100ml. People found exceeding the new limit will face an on-the-spot €200 fine and 3 penalty points, but not a driving ban for a first offence. However bans will be enforced for those found to be over 80mg.

Professional drivers, such as recovery operators, will be subject to the very low 20mg limit and will be subject to disqualification if found breaking that limit. Drivers will therefore need to be very careful of their alcohol intake if they are scheduled to work the next day.