A Christmas crackdown on drink and drug-drivers has led to 212 arrests across Sussex in just four weeks.

The campaign, run twice a year, in addition to routine roads policing is aimed at protecting the public from drink and drug drivers by educating motorists and targeting offenders.

A total of 212 arrests were made by Sussex Police during the operation, which ran throughout December.

Chief Inspector Michael Hodder, of the Surrey and Sussex Roads Policing Unit, said: “These statistics show that there is still a minority of people who think drink and drug-driving is acceptable, with little regard to their lives or those of other people.

“There is simply no excuse for this and we will always take these incidents extremely seriously.

“Fortunately, the vast majority of road users are sensible and law-abiding but there are still some people who refuse to comply.

“It cannot be overstated how enormous the consequences of drink and drug-driving are. Even a small amount of alcohol or drugs can impair your judgement and seriously increase the risk of you injuring or killing yourself or someone else.

“We will be identifying anyone who is convicted as a result of this campaign, and we hope that this will serve as an extra deterrent to those people who refuse to stop this unacceptable behaviour.”

Sussex Police warn drivers who do drive under the influence to be prepared to face the consequences which can include:

• Killing or seriously injuring yourself or someone else;
• A minimum 12 month ban;
• An unlimited fine;
• A possible prison sentence;
• A criminal record, which could affect your current and future employment;
• An increase in your car insurance costs;
• Trouble travelling to countries such as the USA.