Claims that Britain's speed limits are to be slashed to cut down on road deaths have been refuted.

Some newspapers had reported that ministers planned to reduce maximum limits in residential areas from 30mph to 20mph and on other roads, from 60mph to as low as 40mph.

But a spokeswoman for the Department of Transport told BBC News Online it was "nonsense".

Nine people are killed on Britain's roads everyday

The government, she explained, had merely reissued its guidance to local authorities about setting limits for local roads.

In 1999 the law was changed to allow councils to lower speed limits on roads they controlled if they wanted.

It led to a number of 20mph limits being created in built-up areas and particularly outside schools.

The government select committee dealing with speed limits underwent a review recently and one of the outcomes was that the guidance on how local authorities implemented speed limits would be reissued, to take into account the 1999 changes.

Death toll

The spokeswoman said: "The result of the select committee review, and the decision to reissue the advice was published on our website - and we think this is how some sections of the media came to the conclusion that speed limits were changing.

"The speed limit could change on a local road today if a local authority so wished - but no more so than it could yesterday, two years ago, or at any time since 1999 when the legislation was first introduced."

She stressed the powers of councils only extended to local roads in their control - and would never have meant motorway limits could be changed.

Nine people are killed and more than 100 seriously injured each day on British roads.

Prime Minister Tony Blair has pledged to cut these statistics by 40% by 2010.