Obiter is often confused, a consequence of our advancing years. But this predicament can have its (literal) compensations – at least in Wales. First minister Mark Drakeford prompted some bafflement of his own last week when he averred that people who are ‘genuinely confused’ about the nation’s controversially ubiquitous 20mph speed limit will not be prosecuted. Enforcement begins on Monday.
‘I think if the police find somebody driving above 20mph and the reason is they are genuinely confused about that – I don’t think in those circumstances of genuine confusion the police will move to enforcement,’ said Drakeford. ‘In Wales, people do observe the law. They may not have learned to love it… but they are abiding by it.’
Whether Welsh motorists will observe the 20mph limit would now seem a little less likely. In the event of being pulled up for doing 26mph – the threshold for enforcement – all they need to do is tell Plod they’re a tad nonplussed by the signage and they’ll be waved on their way.
An interesting legal precedent, this, to be sure. Imagine if the same principle were extended to burglary: ‘Sorry officer, for a moment there I thought I was in my own house and taking my telly to the tip.’
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