Jack Straw's car stopped for speeding

A car carrying Home Secretary Jack Straw to a meeting with the prime minister was stopped by police for speeding, officials admitted this morning.

A car carrying Home Secretary Jack Straw to a meeting with the prime minister was stopped by police for speeding, officials admitted this morning.

Mr Straw, who has repeatedly called for police to clamp down on speeding drivers, was in the back of the car when it was pulled over by police on July 9 in western England.

Home Office officials on Friday confirmed that the incident took place, but denied a newspaper report that the car was travelling at 103 mph (165 kph). The report said Straw was running late for a meeting with Tony Blair.

The officials said police are still investigating the incident.

It has been a bad month for the governmentÿs bid to crack down on lawlessness.

On July 1, Prime Minister Tony Blair proposed on-the-spot fines for public drunk and disorderly behavior. Days later, his 16-year-old son Euan was taken in by police after being found sprawled out drunk in a central London square. He had been celebrating finishing school exams.

Mr Straw, whose duties include overseeing the national police force, also had a brush with the law when his son William, then 17, was arrested in 1998 for selling cannabis to a newspaper reporter. He received an official warning that will remain on record for three years.