POLICE across The Vale, the north Cotswolds and Stratford are preparing to get tough on motorists who use their mobiles while driving.

From the beginning of December, people caught holding a mobile phone while behind the wheel will be liable to a £30 fixed penalty fine, rising to a possible £2,500 if the case goes to court.

Research has shown that drivers are four times more likely to have an accident if using a phone while driving.

Road safety minister David Jamieson said: "Driving while using a mobile phone is dangerous - you are risking your own life and those of other road users. It is hard to concentrate when you are doing two things at once and any driver will be distracted by a phone call or text message."

Sergeant John Pickersgill, of Gloucestershire Constabulary, said officers would be launching an immediate clampdown on the offence. "We have long recognised the dangers associated with using hand-held mobile phones while driving and have until now been issuing fixed penalty tickets to people not in proper control of their vehicles due to the use of phones," he said.

"However, the new legislation creates a specific offence of driving while using a hand-held mobile phone and this will obviously give us greater grounds to take action and clamp down on this dangerous practice.

"We will be vigorously enforcing the new law when it takes effect."

West Mercia Police have already started to get tough. In September this year a motorist was fined £30 for using a mobile, despite being in a stationary vehicle stuck in traffic. Force spokesman Richard Bull said: "While we would not wish to comment on individual cases, it's important to remember that the driver of a vehicle is in control of - and responsible for - that vehicle, whether it's moving or stationary."

The new regulation also means that employers could be prosecuted if they expect their workers to use mobiles when driving.

In response to this, Gloucestershire County Council is enforcing a strict ban on its employees using their phones while on the road. Councillor John Cordwell, who has responsibility for transport, said: "I hope that all employers in Gloucestershire and beyond will follow the county's lead in getting the message across about the distraction caused when using a mobile phone while driving."

More information on the ban is available on the Department for Transport's website at www.dft.gov.uk.

New rules in detail

The definition of a hand-held phone is something that: "Must be held at some point during the course of making or receiving a call or performing any other interactive communication function."

Hands-free equipment is not prohibited by the new regulation if the phone can be operated without holding it. However, using hands-free phones can risk prosecution for failing to have proper control of a vehicle.

Drivers are advised to switch their phones to voicemail before setting out on a journey. If a phone rings during a journey, it should not be answered.

The new regulations apply to the drivers of all vehicles on the road, including cars, motorcycles, goods vehicles, buses, coaches and taxis. They also apply to anyone supervising a learner driver, while the learner driver is driving.

The rules do not apply to cyclists but the police do have powers to deal with careless or dangerous cycling.

There is an exemption for calls to 999 in genuine emergencies where it is unsafe or impractical to stop.

Rules still apply if a phone is being cradled between the ear and shoulder or held in any other way apart from the hands.

The new regulations apply to "anyone who causes or permits any other person" to use a hand-held mobile phone while driving, so employers could be guilty of an offence if they required their workers use a hand-held phone while driving.

The offence is not endorsable but is subject to a £30 fixed penalty or maximum fine of £1,000 for conviction in court. Drivers of goods vehicles and buses could face fines of up to £2,500. There are also plans to increase fines to £60 with three penalty points.