More young people are dying on UK roads as a result of drink-driving than ever before, a Shropshire firm has revealed.The Telford-based TTC Group, which held its conference in Telford on Saturday, said half of all drink-drive deaths were now aged between 16 and 29.

TTC Group director Graham Wynn said that there was a “worrying trend” of increasing deaths among the young.

The company has the role of educating 10,000 people in the UK and across Europe after they are convicted of drink- driving each year.

Mr Wynn told the conference: “We are killing more younger drivers on our roads as a result of drink-driving.

“Younger drivers take more risks and we are still not getting through to them. We need to do more.”

He also identified another trend of more and more women being caught drink driving.

The company, based at Hadley Park in Telford, has found that many women are now arrested with very high alcohol readings.

It has recommended lowering the alcohol limit in the UK to bring it in line with Europe in an effort to combat increasing drink-driving.

In the six-year period from 1999 there has been a 28 per cent increase in all drink-drive deaths.

District judge David Goodman told the conference how excuses for drink-driving should be rejected and used the example of Otis Ferry, who lives near Shrewsbury.

Mr Ferry was found not guilty of drink-driving because he said his single vodkas had been spiked with triples.

He said: “Laced drinks are not a defence to a charge of drink-driving. The defence has to prove that if the drink is not laced he would not have been over the legal limit.”

Graham Feest, from the Association of Industrial Road Safety Officers, told the conference about the importance of the group’s work in stopping drink-driving.

“We need to educate people and not just punish them,” he said.

The company also specialises in fleet driver training for corporations.

By Dave West