To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 December 2024 to Question 19468 on Special Escort Group, on what statutory basis the police are able to (a) stop and direct traffic and (b) exceed speed limits in non-emergency situations.
Answered on
9 January 2025
Powers for police to stop and direct traffic are set out in sections 35, 37 and 163 of the Road Traffic Act 1988.
The exemption for speed is set out in section 87(1) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. The exemption to speed does not require there to be an emergency to apply; the relevant requirements are that:
The vehicle is being used for police purposes, and
Compliance with the speed limit would be likely to hinder the purpose to which the vehicle is being put at the relevant time.