Formula One driver and seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher joined Brian Simpson, Labour MEP for the North West, for the launch of the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

The event endorsed the 'eSafety Challenge', which promotes new life-saving technology that can be fitted to cars and other vehicles to minimise the risk of skidding, alert drivers to excessive speeds and even put an end to deadly 'blind spots'.

Long-time road safety campaigner Brian Simpson said at the launch: "We must make sure that we are taking advantage of every piece of new technology if it makes our roads safer for cyclists, pedestrians and drivers".

Mr Simpson, who is Chairman of the European Parliament's powerful Transport Committee, is active in a campaign for the EU to review older laws that are failing to tackle the issue of 'blind spots' for HGV drivers, which lead to thousands of fatalities each year.  

Last month, Mr Simpson led all Labour Euro MPs in signing the "See me, save me" petition in the European Parliament, which received an overwhelming number of signatures and caused the EU to examine making it mandatory for HGVs to be fitted with the most advanced technology.

"The campaign heightens the pressure on law-makers in Brussels to look at how we can prevent these needless tragedies. By fitting lorries with sensors, cameras and better brakes, North West cyclists and pedestrians will become more visible and drivers will be able to react faster in an emergency", said Mr Simpson in Strasbourg.

The "See me, save me" was launched by the family of cyclist Eilidh Cairns, who tragically lost her life two years ago in a collision with a lorry on her route to work.