Alcohol Policy UK

Off license pilot banning sales to under 21's reportedly a success

A scheme in West Lothain, Scotland has reduced violence and vandalism calls by 50%, a BBC article reports. The findings are based on a 6 week period in which alcohol sales to under 21's were banned and anyone under 25 would be asked for identification. However the chief inspector for the area reported that whilst the findings were very positive, they needed further consideration in the context of other changes since the previous year such as the development of neighbourhood policing.

Women and Alcohol: Scotland sees 60% rise in alcohol-fuelled violence by women

A 60% rise in violence by women in Scotland over the last the last 5 years is fuelled by the growing 'ladette' culture, an article in the Sunday Times claims. Senior police officers are reported to have confirmed alcohol's role in the increases, particularly as murder rates have remained constant but figures for assaults have risen sharply. The rise has also caused concern about the implications for the criminal justice system, with the number of women in prison rising by 90% in the last decade.

Earlier this month an article by Ian Gilmore, the president of the Royal College of Physicians, considered the cultural shift of drinking amongst women, its consequences and the policy context for addressing it.

Scottish Government announces £25 million to reduce alcohol misuse

The Scottish government has set a precedent this week in announcing £25 million for alcohol screening, prevention and treatment for the year 2008/2009. This is a doubling of the previous financial year’s spend of £10.13 million and marks a significant commitment to spend £85 million over the next three years.  Visiting a screening and interventions nurse programme based in Kilmarnock, Shona Robinson, the Minister for Public Health said:

“The record funding I am announcing today demonstrates the Scottish Government's clear commitment to address Scotland's complex relationship with alcohol.

"Far too many Scots are drinking above the recommended amounts on a regular basis - often without realising that they are doing so, and without understanding the impact it is having on their health.

"But Scottish Government action does not stop there. We are currently developing a long term strategic approach to tackling alcohol misuse. We plan to publish our proposals for action before the summer."

This may put pressure on the Department of Health, who so far have made no further commitments to increase spend on alcohol treatment and interventions since it announced an extra £15 million through the Choosing Health agenda.   However it is reported that many PCTs did not direct the allocation to delivering or improving alcohol services as the money had not been ring fenced.  An Alcohol Concern report is expected this year to show how much PCTs are spending on alcohol.

 

For the orginal report and further details visit www.scotland.gov.uk 

Tackling young people's drinking pt95

Mentor UK has announced its 2008 awards scheme - aimed at recognising projects in England, Scotland and Wales that can help prevent children and young people aged 14 or under from misusing alcohol – both now and in their future lives.   Nominations are sought for projects that promote healthy attitudes and behaviours and which help children and young people to avoid the dangers of alcohol misuse.

Awards will be made in the following three categories:

• for work in schools
• for work in the community
• for projects led by young people

Details here

The first month of an alcohol test-purchasing scheme to help curb underage drinking in Strathclyde has recorded a "failure" rate of just 9%. Of 235 test purchases at licensed premises last month as part of the Can't Tell - Don't Sell campaign, only 21 were recorded as failures. The crackdown by Strathclyde Police involves deploying 16-year-olds to licensed premises, where they try to buy alcohol.  The Herald

A scheme to mark alcohol with ultra-violet labels so it can be traced back to retailers is unlikely to be effective in combating under-age drinking, says independent retailers' association NFRN. The scheme is being piloted in Fife, and local MSP Claire Baker is calling for it to be extended to cover the whole of Scotland.

But NFRN president Colin Finch said:

“Underage drinking is becoming a significant problem in the communities that NFRN members serve. As independent and local retailers, members know that underage alcohol consumption can be damaging equally to teenagers and their neighbourhoods.

"As much as the NFRN supports any regulation or legislation that might help in resolving the issue we doubt that the UV marking scheme – as currently piloted in Fife – would be effective at all.

"We have, on numerous occasions, stressed the problem of proxy buying for example, where an adult purchases alcohol and or tobacco and sells or passes these products on to underage consumers.

“Finding a product in the hands of an underage consumer does not guarantee in any way that the same person actually made the purchase. Not to mention that with today's changing lifestyle alcohol may be found in most home refrigerators – without the teenagers actually needing to purchase it.  TalkingRetail.com

Pupils at Middleton Technology School and Queen Anne’s Academy were shown the dangers of underage drinking in a powerful drama by Altru Theatre Company. The ‘fingers burnt’ performance links in with a brand new ‘Responsible Retailer’ scheme which is being piloted in Middleton. The scheme involves local retailers agreeing to challenge young people who look under the age of 21 in a bid to reduce under-age sales and anti-social behaviour. Responsible Retailers will ask for a valid form of ID from anyone who looks under 21 when purchasing alcohol, cigarettes, knives or solvents.  Rochdale online

Neighbours urged to report parental alcohol misuse, Scotland

Scots are being urged to shop their neighbours to police and social workers if they suspect they are neglecting their children because of drug addiction or alcohol abuse. In a major new campaign to be launched next month, the Scottish Government will call on residents to expose any addicts or alcoholics in their area who are failing to care for their children. They want people to use a new dedicated national phoneline, linked to the authorities, who may then visit the affected families and take their children away if they are deemed to be in danger.

Ministers denied that the plan would become a "snooper's charter", insisting that, such is the scale of the crisis affecting vulnerable families, drastic measures are now necessary. The latest figures show that there are as many as 60,000 Scottish children who currently live with drug abusers. A further 100,000 are believed to be living with parents with an alcohol problem.

Politicians from all parties have warned they are being inundated with information about shocking cases of babies and children being left unwashed and unfed by parents who care only about their next fix or another drink. In a bid to emphasise the scale of the problem, ministers want to brand the new phoneline "the fourth emergency number", alongside police, fire and ambulance services.  Scotland on Sunday

Tackling young people's drinking pt93: Strathroy educational summer programme; confiscations from 10 and 11 year olds, Darwen and Paisley; Strabane parents to blame

• A successful joint educational initiative between local alcohol and drug awareness agency, The E go Project and the Strathroy Community Association spent four weeks addressing the problems associated with under-age drinking and drug abuse. The summer programme was carried out during the month of July within the Strathroy Summer Scheme, with a total of 15 young people ranging in age from 10 to 14 years-old, addressing various issues related to alcohol and drug use, before then producing a project that raises awareness further in their areas or community.  Ulster Herald
  

• Alcoholic drinks have been seized from children as young as ten during a campaign to combat anti-social behaviour. Darwen police have confiscated hundreds of bottles and cans of lager, beer and cider from youngsters across the town. At least 300 items bottles and cans were found by officers as part of Operation Summer Nights, which targeted anti-social behav-iour over the summer holidays. Hotspot areas included Earcroft and Whitehall Park. Sergeant John Cisco said:

"Each year we have taken part in operation Summer Nights and there has certainly been an increase in the amount of alcohol we seize.  We have confiscated at least 300-plus bottles and cans. In the worst cases we have confiscated alcohol from children under ten, but not much younger than that. The under tens had been hanging around with groups of youngsters who were older.  Blackburn Citizen

• Schoolboys aged as young as 11 were so drunk that they were unable to stand up when police found them at a drinking den. A pile of cheap wine and cider bottles, most of them empty, were discovered just feet away from the youngsters. With them in a Paisley housing scheme were two other children, aged 14 and 15, who had downed so much booze that they couldn’t walk or talk. Now worried police chiefs are urging parents to help them tackle the teeny tippling culture that is putting the lives of Renfrewshire kids at risk. Paisley police boss Superintendent Alastair Neilson said:

“We have found some children in a terrible state through alcohol. It’s alarming and could end in tragedy.” 

The 11-year-old boys were among scores of youngsters rounded up during a clampdown on under-age drinking in Paisley and the neighbouring towns of Johnstone, Renfrew and Erskine. Mr Neilson revealed that more than 200 litres of booze was confiscated from drunken kids and poured down the drain. Some of the youngsters who were caught were taken home and, with their parents’ consent, have been referred to the Young Persons Advisory Project to help them kick the booze habit. Other offenders have either been reported to the Reporter to the Children’s Hearing or the procurator fiscal.  icRenfrewshire

• THE problem of underage drinking in Strabane is being aggravated by parents who choose to buy their children alcohol, a local off licence owner claimed this week. Licensee of Christy's Bar and Off Licence Raymond Barr made the revelation following the recent launch of an underage drinking crackdown by the Federation of the Retail Licensed Trade (FRLT). FRLT Chief Executive Stephen Kelly wrote to 1,000 publicans across the north to ensure they are doing all within their power to prevent underage youths accessing drink. In the letter, Mr Kelly reminded licensees that anyone caught purchasing alcohol for a minor could face six months in prison. This however doesn't appear to be deterrent enough in Strabane according to Mr Barr, who told the Strabane Chronicle that older people supplying drink to youths is a regular problem faced by both himself and his staff.  Strabane Chronicle
  

Scottish Licensing Boards plan tough stance on alcohol-related harm despite resistance from the trade

• Garages and petrol station forecourt shops across Scotland may be forced to stop selling alcohol within two years under new laws. Licensing chiefs in Glasgow are the first in the country to have signalled their intention to prevent garages selling alcohol unless the premises can prove it is the main source of fuel and groceries for the local community. The 2005 Licensing Act allows all boards across Scotland to introduce the measure and with the country's largest board formally indicating that it will be a matter of policy to refuse permission for garages to sell alcohol most others are expected to follow suit. But trade representatives have said the policy is meaningless as there is no evidence of any link between drink driving and the sale of alcohol in garages. They claim that it does little more than punish small retailers, while major supermarkets continue to sell both alcohol and petrol.  The Herald

• Scares that vertical drinking policies will be brought in under new Scottish Licensing Laws have been described as "overblown" as most pubs already include 25 per cent of their premises as seating. This is according to Patrick Browne, chief executive of the Scottish Beer and Pub Association, who added that licensing boards who try to implement such policies would be overstepping their powers anyway.   Reports in the Scottish media have raised concerns that plans to force pubs to provide more seating might jeopardise some of the smaller, character, venues. However, these reports are based on the notion that licensing boards might try to enforce 50 per cent seating. Browne has heard that Perth and Kinross, Edinburgh and North Lanarkshire licensing boards are looking at 25 per cent vertical drinking policies. But he argues that any such restriction could only be brought in using powers under Health and Safety or Building Regulations – and not the new licensing laws.  The Publican

Cheap alcohol promotions to be banned in Scotland

Cut-price and free alcohol offers in Scottish shops are to be made illegal in a bid to tackle the nation's "destructive" drinking culture. Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said licensing laws would be extended to outlaw drink promotions in corner shops, supermarkets and other stores. Alcohol-related illness kills six people in Scotland every day.

Mr MacAskill said the perception of "drinking to get drunk" should no longer be seen as acceptable. Under the measures, which have come at the start of a long-term drive, shops will also be required to have separate alcohol display areas - a move which will come into effect in 2009.

It is hoped the other restrictions can be brought in early next year. As well as trying to ban promotions such as buy-two-get-one-free deals, ministers are also taking legal advice on how to end the practice of "deep-discounting", where shops sell alcohol at an artificially low price.  BBC News

See alcohol Tesco booze sales slammed in the Greenock Telegraph

Alcohol misusers at risk: fatties, ladettes, bar staff, and Saga louts

• Britons are drinking an extra day’s worth of calories every week through alcohol, and triggering higher protection insurance rates.  According to research commissioned by Standard Life with 3,278 adults, the average UK resident is drinking enough lager, wine, cider and spirits to pack on almost 3,000 calories a week. Mick James, protection marketing manager for Standard Life, said: 'The indirect financial impact of a growing nation can affect anything from your private medical insurance to life insurance and critical illness insurance, which can all be far more expensive if you have a body mass index over the average for your height and age. In the worst case scenario you might actually be declined cover.'  He added: 'Someone with a body mass index over 30 is technically obese. We would typically charge an extra 75% for someone’s life insurance with a BMI between 32.6 and 35.' Citywire

• Growing ladette culture means young women who work in offices are twice as likely to drink themselves to death as the rest of the population.  They are apeing the macho office culture and dying from liver disease, cirrhosis and alcohol poisoning, according to figures.  Actresses and female entertainers who are accused by many of promoting ladette behaviour are also among the most likely to die from drink. Alcohol-related deaths have doubled since 1991 - up from 4,144 to 8,386 last year. And experts fear the toll will rise as the 24-hour drinking culture begins to affect the nation's health. Rising levels of binge-drinking have been blamed for high numbers of mouth cancer cases and babies with developmental problems.  The figures from the Office for National Statistics showed that among women, the third most dangerous occupation in terms of risk of dying from alcohol was the office junior.  These are young workers who carry out tasks such as photocopying, delivering mail and data entry.  They are 1.92 times more likely to die from alcohol than the rest of the population.  Daily Mail

• Bar staff are the mostly likely workers to die of alcohol-related problems, figures for England and Wales indicate. The Office for National Statistics data shows bar staff are twice as likely as average to die from conditions such as liver disease or pancreatitis. Least likely to die, according to the figures from 2001 to 2005, were farmers among men and educational assistants among women. Alcohol-related deaths have doubled since 1991. Last year the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed alcohol deaths, which include poisoning but not alcohol-induced accidents, topped 8,000 in 2005, up from just above 4,000 in 1991. The latest study looked at 13,011 deaths among men aged 20 to 64 and 3,655 deaths among women. It showed male bar staff were 2.23 times more liked to die from alcohol than average, while their female colleagues were 2.03 times more likely. BBC News

• A new breed of Saga louts - retired people who drink too much - has been identified by a top psychiatrist, who claims they are second only to twenty-somethings in their appetite for alcohol. Dr Peter Rice says the typical Saga lout is retired, acquired a taste for drinking at home as alcohol prices dropped in the 1970s and 1980s, and is well off enough to enjoy regular evenings knocking back their favourite wines and beers. Rice, a consultant psychiatrist based at Sunnyside Royal Hospital, Montrose, is concerned by the growing number of elderly binge drinkers on his patient list. Rice is so concerned he has flagged up the problem to a Scottish Parliament think-tank, Scotland's Futures Forum, which is investigating ways to reduce alcohol and drug misuse. Recent figures obtained by Scotland on Sunday reveal that in 2001/2 the number of people over the age of 60 admitted to Scottish hospitals with an alcohol-related illness was 8,500. This rose to 10,573 in 2005/6. But the trend among youngsters is down, with 1,733 teenagers aged 15 to 19 admitted in 2001/2, compared with 1,462 in 2005/6.  Scotland on Sunday

Tackling alcohol-related crime and disorder: Safer Scotland; York and Eastbourne stag nights; Wakefield ASBOs

• Scotland: Police cracking down on street drinking have seized enough alcohol to fill a petrol tanker in the past year.  Officers confiscated 17,451 litres as part of a Safer Scotland campaign against knife and alcohol-related violence. The Herald

• Stag and hen parties have a negative impact on York according to the city's tourism partnership, which has asked if they should be banned. The partnership undertook research into people's opinions of the city's night time economy, asking tourists, business owners and residents for their views. Business owners felt that one of the worst aspects of York in the evening was the prevalence of stag and hen parties and that there should be a debate over whether such groups should be confined to one area or even banned completely from staying in the city overnight through hotels and guest houses adhering to a common policy.  York Press

• New pubs, clubs and bars are to be banned from an area in the centre of Eastbourne over fears it will become the stag party capital of the south. Councillors fear the town could become a ‘downmarket party place’ if they do not limit the number of bars and clubs. Eastbourne Borough Council has also decided to make it much harder for venues to extend their opening hours. The ban covers a half a mile square zone which already contains 37 licensed pubs and clubs - more than half of the total for the whole of the town.  Morning Advertiser

• People in the Wakefield District are being warned not to go over the top when they go out, or they could face severe penalties. Strict new measures have been put into place to reduce alcohol related violent crime in Wakefield City Centre. If a person is arrested for assault, public order offences, being drunk or disorderly or any other violent crime, the police will collate data and record it. The person will also be referred to the Wakefield Anti-Social Behaviour Unit, who will instigate intervention work with the individual. This may take the form of receiving a letter warning them about their behaviour or a warning of notice of legal action, or even consideration to seek an Anti-Social Behaviour Order (ASBO), which could prevent them from entering pubs and clubs within the City Centre along with other conditions.  West Yorkshire Police