Advanced Driving Hub

waremark wrote:"The current regulations do not refer to essential or non-essential but 'reasonably necessary' for a specific purpose. "

Are you stating that it would be a criminal offence to drive for pleasure? Or just that it is contrary to guidelines?

The Statutory Instrument 2020 (1200) states... “No person may leave or be outside of the place where they are living without reasonable excuse”

For “excuse” read “reason”, then it makes more sense; except “reasonable reason” wouldn’t sound right.

The regulations then list examples of what might be considered “reasonable excuse”. Driving for pleasure is not listed, but of course the list is not exhaustive. However, ... “to visit a public outdoor place for the purpose of open air recreation” is regarded as a “reasonable excuse” for being outside your residence. The regulations are silent on how you get to the public outdoor place.

So, it seems there’s nothing to prevent you driving to a public outdoor place for the purpose of open air recreation whilst having a pleasurable drive to get there!

Anyway, that’s my understanding of the law this week. Next week Boris has a whole different raft of rules for us.

And a public place is defined as any highway the public has access to, among other things.

waremark wrote:"The current regulations do not refer to essential or non-essential but 'reasonably necessary' for a specific purpose. "

Are you stating that it would be a criminal offence to drive for pleasure? Or just that it is contrary to guidelines?

The regulations state,

Offences and penalties
20.—(1) A person commits an offence if, without reasonable excuse, the person—
(a) contravenes a restriction or requirement imposed under regulation 5...

Regulation 5

(1) No person may leave or be outside of the place where they are living without reasonable
excuse.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)—
(a) the circumstances in which a person has a reasonable excuse include where one of the
exceptions set out in regulation 6 applies;
]

These are the specific purposes I referred to above.

The use of the word 'include' in para 2 of reg 5 implies the list is not exhaustive however the court would look at the nature of the exceptions to determine whether or not any other activity would amount to reasonable excuse.

I wouldn't like to argue that driving for pleasure is a reasonable excuse. Although deriving pleasure from driving as part of an activity that amounts to reasonable excuse isn't prohibited. Not yet, at least.

Good reply, thanks. I'll be thinking of reasonable excuses for the next lockdown.