Press Release
MP Recalls Tragedy of Gillian Curran's Death
As the third anniversary of Gillian Curran’s death approaches, Tom Clarke MP spoke poignantly about her tragic roadside death. During a House of Commons Debate he also lashed out at, ‘hit and run drivers’. With the festive season beckoning the MP is urging drivers who drink alcohol to dump their cars and get a taxi.
Recalling the young woman’s last hours Mr Clarke said:
“Gillian Curran, a bright, vivacious young woman, was coming home from work just before Christmas a few years ago. She had completed her Christmas shopping just the day before. When I last spoke to her parents, Sandra and Patrick, they told me that those presents and her room remain exactly as they were. Obviously, her sister, Nicola, was devastated. The community reflected on what took place and approached me with a Petition that was signed by around 11,000 people. I acknowledge that many of the representations that I made were taken on board by the then Minister who piloted the Road Safety Act 2006 through Parliament”.
The MP added:
“The circumstances of this particular case were that Gillian was returning from work during the pre-Christmas rush and found herself in a tailback just outside the Hilton hotel in Bellshill. A driver, who was clearly driving too fast, hit her, and her car in turn hit the car in front. The situation ended tragically, with Gillian fighting for her life. Sadly, she passed away in the evening. On the evidence so far, life for that family will never be the same again. Although they are not looking for revenge - they have told me that again and again - they find it unacceptable that, because of the ambiguity of legislation on careless driving and dangerous driving, the people who had to make a decision about a prosecution decided that the charge would be careless driving. The consequence was that the person responsible was fined £500 and disqualified for six months. It was not possible to draw the attention of the court to the fact that a life was lost. Clearly, that was not acceptable”.
Tom Clarke concluded:
“Something like nine people a day are killed on the roads. Of all the constituency cases that I have dealt with over the years, none have struck me with the same poignancy as that of Gillian Curran. As her parents have said on several occasions, ‘we cannot bring Gillian back, but we have a responsibility to other young people’. If people act blatantly against the law, as we have heard about this afternoon they should clearly face the full penalty of the law. I therefore plead that legislation on road safety should reflect what happens on Britain’s roads today and face up to the challenges of some of the less attractive aspects of modern Britain. Parliament should do its utmost in the interests of road safety and of the people who use the streets and roads of our country”.