Nader Proposes National Vehicle Safety Standards

Ralph Nader, author and automobile safety expert, last night called national safety legislation the only way to stop the production of unsafe vehicles.

Nader, speaking before the annual banquet of the Harvard Student Legislative Research Burcau, said that present standards, as suggested by Congressional resolutions, were inadequate.

The Research Bureau, run by students at the Law School, is drafting an auto safety bill which Nader may present to a Congressional subcommittee. Donald N. Dewecs, a second year law student, is working on the technical aspects of the bill.

Investigated by G.M.

Nader, who graduated from the Law School in 1958, has testified before the Senate Commerce Committee on automotive safety. His testimony and his book, Unsafe at Any Speed, prompted General Motors to investigate his personal life.

Nader said General Motors regularly investigates people "for procurement of information which can be used to silence its critics."

Detroit has always contended that safety is not a marketable commodity and that consumers would not be willing to pay for it, he said. Nader also suggested that the money spent on model changes could be just as well spent on safer construction.