Formula One driver Mark Webber has been accused of undermining Victoria's road safety campaign after he called Australia a "bloody nanny state" in the wake of Lewis Hamilton's hoon session in St Kilda.
Victoria Police said Webber "should know better" after he attacked Victoria's speeding and parking regulations and said he felt he needed to "read an instruction book" before getting out of bed.
Webber, who finished ninth in yesterday's Grand Prix at Albert Park, was speaking after F1 ace Hamilton had his car impounded after he was caught doing burnouts in the Melbourne bayside suburb of St Kilda on Friday night.
''It's a great country, but we've got to be responsible for our actions and it's certainly a bloody nanny state when it comes to what we can do. Lewis has found out very quickly," Webber said.
''I think we've got to read an instruction book when we get out of bed - what we can do and what we can't do ... put a yellow vest on and all that sort of stuff.
"It pisses me off coming back here, to be honest."
Deputy Police Commissioner Ken Lay says the state's road toll is distressingly high and Webber should know better.
"That's after a weekend [which left] six dead, four of them attributed to speeding," he said.
"It's really disappointing. Mark Webber's in a unique position where he's got the ability to influence our road users. He's missed an opportunity. He's probably undermined our message.
"Might I be so bold to say there's probably quite a few Webber fans still alive today because of the work we do," he added.
"Hopefully on reflection he'd wish he hadn't said it."
Webber's Red Bull team declined to comment when contacted by the ABC this morning but said the driver's original remarks had been made in a private conversation.
abc.com.au 29 Mar 2010
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