RoSPA calls for debate on speed cameras

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) has called for an open public debate on the subject of speed cameras.

Switching these devices off will increase the number of accidents on Britain's roads, the motoring group claims.

The government announced earlier this summer that it would stop central funding for speed cameras, leading many counties, including Oxfordshire and Devon, to turn theirs off completely as part of austerity measures.

RoSPA has been joined in its campaign by nine other motoring groups, including the AA, Road Safety GB and the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety.

"While public spending needs to be cut, cuts must be justified by evidence. Cameras pay for themselves and currently make an important contribution to achieving compliance with the speed limit," the group says in a statement.

RoSPA fears that as cameras currently account for 84 per cent of fixed-penalty notices for speeding, allowing them to be turned off will create a huge void in speeding law enforcement.