Alcohol in the news 7/11/06

• Coronation Street actress Beverley Callard has officially launched Manchester's Best Bar None awards, which for this year includes an LGBT category for the first time.  Ms Callard, who plays Liz McDonald in the popular soap, encouraged responsible venues to get involved with the initiative, that rewards well managed venues who take their customers’ safety seriously. “The Best Bar None awards are a fantastic example of the police working together with the alcohol industry and the local authority to fight the problems caused by binge-drinking and alcohol fuelled crime”, said PC Paul Acton, from City Safe. “We have a range of initiatives in Manchester to further reduce alcohol-related crime and disorder and by licensees operating in such a responsible way, the Best Bar None Awards have undoubtedly contributed to a fall in incidents.”  Pink News

• It is something that many of us have long suspected - hangovers really do get worse as you get older. Scientists have shown that teenagers have a greater resistance to alcohol. Not only are they less clumsy and sleepy on the night itself, they do not suffer as much the next day. It is thought that the adolescent brain, which develops rapidly during the teenage years, copes better with the intoxicating effects of alcohol. It is not all good news, however, as youngsters may be lulled into a false sense of security, leading them to do untold damage to their health. Study author Professor Elena Varlinskaya said: 'This ability of adolescents to rapidly counteract some unpleasant alcohol effects may allow them to have more drinks per occasion. 'This pattern of binge drinking, being unsafe in general, might be extremely dangerous for adolescents, given that their brain is especially vulnerable to alcohol damage.'  Daily Mail

• A local resident has initiated a hearing at Richmond Magistrates’ Court, for it to decide whether Richmond’s licensing sub-committee followed the correct procedure when it recently granted a licence to ‘Parvinu’ for a proposed wine bar. There were 89 written complaints from local residents, more than any other single licensing issue in St Margarets. At the onset of the meeting the Chairman announced that only 22 of these complaints would be taken into consideration as he had decided to set a boundary limit of 150 metres for valid objections. Philip Morgan one of St Margarets local councillors (representing local residents) questioned the basis for this boundary. He was told it was based on a licensing application regarding a Wetherspoon’s pub in the Midlands. Harry Jacobs who has complained to the Court said “Whilst the 2003 Licensing Act states that only a person living in the vicinity of the premises has the right to be an ‘interested party’, it very clearly also states in terms of defining vicinity - ‘each case must be considered on its own merits’.  For the Chairman to immediately dismiss two thirds of the complainants on the basis of a decision taken elsewhere in the country certainly wasn’t the spirit or intent of the 2003 Act, especially as in reality all but one of those excluded complainants live within 1500ft of the proposed venue. ”  St Margarets Community Website

• Edinburgh: Brewing giant Scottish and Newcastle has clinched a sponsorship deal to provide the drinks at the first ever Hogmanay bars on Princes Street.  Fosters, John Smith's bitter, wine and soft drinks will be on offer at a string of stalls inside the Royal Bank Street Party arena.  The Scottish Ambulance Service had opposed plans by the organisers of the street party to allow alcohol to be sold on Princes Street at the event for the first time.  However, council officials believe the move will help dissuade people from bringing along home-made "cocktails" to the event.  The council said it would be joining forces with Scottish and Newcastle to promote sensible drinking messages in the run-up to this year's celebrations.  Scotsman

• Underage drinkers in Liverpool are being sold alcohol over the phone by home delivery companies who fail to check their customers' ages.  Trading Standards officers in the city found that five out of seven businesses sold alcohol to children under 18 without asking for identification.   BBC News

• Jason McAteer believes modern-day footballers have cleaned up their act. The Tranmere Rovers midfielder says that the past decade has seen an end to the drink culture within the English game. And the former Republic of Ireland international - who has also plied his trade at Bolton, Liverpool, Blackburn and Sunderland, clocking up over 400 appearances - feels the influence of foreign coaches has been a major factor in the change.  icLiverpool

• Alcohol and obesity remain the top public health concerns facing Scotland, the country's most senior doctor has warned.  Dr Harry Burns, the chief medical officer for Scotland, published his annual report into the state of the nation's health, in which it he outlines the problems caused by both drink and being overweight.  Statistics in the report reveal that in 2004-2005 more than 31,000 people were admitted to hospital with an alcohol related condition - some 4% of all admissions in that year.  icScotland   The CMO's report: Health in Scotland 2005