Tayside Police in common with all Scottish Forces participated in a day of action against mobile phone offenders from 7am on Wednesday, August 27 to 7am on Thursday August 28 (today).

The purpose of the campaign was to reinforce legislation introduced 18 months ago that increases penalties for using a mobile phone while driving or supervising a driver.

During the 24-hours, 33 drivers fell foul of the law and were issued with a conditional offer with a £60 fine and 3 penalty points on their licence. 21 of those drivers were in Dundee, six in Angus and six in Perth and Kinross.

Chief Inspector Sandy Bowman, Head of Road Policing said: "The 33 drivers who were reported represents a significant number of offenders and once again makes it very clear to the police that we must continue to do all that we can to encourage motorists to abide by the law.

"There has been significant progress over a number of years in reducing the levels of casualties on our roads - something that has been achieved through a variety of means, including campaigns such as this through which we highlight and enforce legislation.

"This legislation recognises the dangers of using a mobile phone whilst driving. It is high time that all drivers acknowledge this fact too.

"Any road traffic legislation that is designed to improve road safety exists for the benefit of all road users - mobile phone legislation is no exception. Tayside Police will use all legislative powers at its disposal to try to improve safety on our roads.

"Our advice is simple - Switch off before you drive off."