Attempts to curb teenage drinking

[AfternoonDelight]

After the announcement by our government of some serious measures to try and stamp out underage drinking, are these sensible steps or just another example of the nanny state?

They are:

Raising the minimum age for off-sales alcohol purchases to 21

Setting a minimum price at which a unit of alcohol can be sold

Ending 'three for the price of two' type promotions, which encourage impulse buying of extra alcohol

A 'social responsibility fee' for some alcohol retailers to help pay for the consequences of alcohol misuse and reduce the burden on the general taxpayer

Introducing alcohol-only checkouts in large off-sales premises, so that alcohol, like cigarettes, is thought of as a special case and not 'just another product'

Confirmation of a record £85 million increase in alcohol prevention, treatment and support services, bringing total spend to £120 million over the next three years

Only proposals at the moment, but as someone said on the news last night - what's the point of restricting 18 year olds buying drink from off licenses if they can still get it in pubs? Fair enough it will help the "up the river" or "down the park" sessions. But what about the sensible people who just want a drink in the house?

[katarina]

Won't work. the whole drinking culture has to be changed. don't ask me how it should be done. No one seems to know how to have fun any more without drink. Maybe education on same should be looked at more positively?

[angela5]

Something needs to be done to stop bottle stalls at school fayres selling tickets to 12 year olds and letting them gather up a nice collection of alcohol. [disgust]

[AfternoonDelight]

:eek:

Surely drink shouldn't even be on these stalls? What are the teachers thinking?

:eek:

[grumpy1]

im sorry any school which allows alcohol onto a bottle stall in the first place should be severely penalised.totally irresponsible..if they can get it at school then what is that teaching them???

[Venture]

In all the time Ive helped out at school BBQs or anything with a bottle stall the procedure has been that if any child wins a bottle, it must be collected by an adult and this applies to raffles as well. If no adult was attending then the parents were telephoned to come and collect it the following day. Angela5 if you have been at a school function where alcohol has been given out to a child then you should report it.

[grumpy1]

Has anyone seen that new advert about the girl who dolls herself up then trashes the look..with the caption 'You wouldn't start the night looking like that so why end it that way.'
I think that makes a good point.

[Cattach]

Won't work. the whole drinking culture has to be changed. don't ask me how it should be done. No one seems to know how to have fun any more without drink. Maybe education on same should be looked at more positively?

Sure you are right but also wothout enforcement of existing laws the problem will not be solved. Everyone knows youngsters buy alcoholic drink and it is known where but the police hardly pursue the matter and the justice system does not follow through where cases are identified. If retailers recived big fines and had their licesnces removed in all proven cases that would start to work.

[angela5]

In all the time Ive helped out at school BBQs or anything with a bottle stall the procedure has been that if any child wins a bottle, it must be collected by an adult and this applies to raffles as well. If no adult was attending then the parents were telephoned to come and collect it the following day. Angela5 if you have been at a school function where alcohol has been given out to a child then you should report it.

This 12 year olds were not with an adult, the alcohol was set aside and they were told to get an adult to collect it for them :confused
Which they did, a young lad of 18 collected it and handed it straight to them. Off they went quite happy behind the bushes and consumed the lot.

[AfternoonDelight]

OH

MY

WORD

:eek:

[Venture]

This 12 year olds were not with an adult, the alcohol was set aside and they were told to get an adult to collect it for them :confused
Which they did, a young lad of 18 collected it and handed it straight to them. Off they went quite happy behind the bushes and consumed the lot.


If the alcohol was handed over to an adult by the school then they cannot be held responsible for what he decides to do with it once he leaves their premises. If I was made aware of something like this I certainly would have reported it to the police.

[katarina]

Sure you are right but also wothout enforcement of existing laws the problem will not be solved. Everyone knows youngsters buy alcoholic drink and it is known where but the police hardly pursue the matter and the justice system does not follow through where cases are identified. If retailers recived big fines and had their licesnces removed in all proven cases that would start to work.

of course i agree with that too.

[fingalmacool]

The drug pushers will be rubbing their hands at the thought of all the youngsters not being able to get their buckfast. They will be popping pills and sniffing glue before you can say, buy one get one free.

[Kevin Milkins]

Young people did not invent the idea of boozing and getting drunk and making an arse of themselves, they just copy what us (responsible) adults do. I saw a picture in the paper of a gang of adult football supporters wheeling a supermarket trolly through the streets,full of booze proberbly singing "Yer We Go,Yer We Go,Yer We Go. I would guess that these people may just be ordinary hard working guys letting there hair down.
Unless parents and older people dont set the right tone for responsible consumption of booze, the measures that are proposed will be of no benifit at all.

[AfternoonDelight]

I agree - blame the parents!!

[TBH]

How about six months in the nick with no chance of getting out until it's over.
That should stop a lot of people buying alcohol for underagers.

[Kevin Milkins]

I dont think we need to go down the road of lets find sombody to blame,what concerns me is why have we become a nation of piss heads.
And what concerns me even more is we have a generation coming up behind us that seem to think its the norm and can afford it.
I was playing rugby in Ireland some years ago and myself and some freinds were buying some chips and burger at a late night van.
We started to take some stick from some Irish youths of we hate the brits tone.
I went over to chat with them and told them I was Welsh, and why did they hate Brits?
After about 20 minuites of having the crack with them ,not one could tell me why they hated Brits apart from thats what there parents told them.
I think we all need to look inwards if we are going to solve many of todays ills.

[starry]

The government can stand on it's head and bring in guidelines for the next 100 years it won't make a bit of difference until parents start taking responsibility.

If you child is picked up drunk or with alcohol then you should be phoned and asked to come and pick them up.
In my area this doesn't happen atm, the police will take the alcohol and write to the parents to inform them.


It is too easy to ignore the letter, we all get defensive if our parenting skills are being questioned and very few people I know will pop down the police station for the invited chat.
Also how many of the letters actually reach the parents, I know I spent many a time checking the post to make sure my folks never did receive the letters about my school absences.

[Buttercup]

Personally, I think it's time that there was some kind of comeback on all these underagers who attempt to buy alcohol or cigarettes. They are well aware of what they're doing and know it's against the law, but do it as they've nothing to loose. But where do they get all the money? ~ they're certainly not all working for it.
As for youngsters getting alcohol from a bottle stall at a school, I take it you did report it to the police as soon as possible. What did the headmaster have to say about it? Bottle stalls are a great attraction and can raise a lot of money, but it's very irresponsible to allow someone to "man" the stall if they're going to break the law.