Press Releases for 2005
"NO END TO BRITAIN'S DRINKING PROBLEMS - WHY GOVERNMENT WONT TACKLE DRINK'S INDUSTRY," CLAIM GREENS
17th March 2005Dr Geoff Meaden, Green Party Candidate for Canterbury has set out a radical alternative to the government's new licensing law's. He comments: "The government claims to be concerned about the increasing drink problems, but all the evidence, even from scientists consulted by them, show the policies chosen by the Government are those known to be the least effective. They have buried evidence of Britain's overall drunkenness to accommodate the powerful drinks industry (1). The truth is that the government's own figures show alcohol costs society £21.05bn a year in lost productivity, health costs and crime, yet the government makes more than £30bn from the drinks industry in taxes (2). Britain now has the highest levels of social alcohol-related harm in Europe and our alcohol-related cirrhosis figures are particularly shocking (3). Understandably few people are happy with extending hours - even two-thirds of police think it will lead to more violence (4)." Geoff Meaden added: "I welcome the transfer of responsibility to the local authorities - but responsibility without power is meaningless. We need to give local Councils real power and resources to control drinking times and venues (5). Local Government should not be afraid to say ENOUGH to the drinks industry." "We need a radical strategy to protect public health. This should include: stopping the drinks industry from encouraging excessive drinking by banning advertisements, happy hours and certain promotions; like Australia and Ireland, abandon the longer hours; increase price slowly. Medical opinion argues there will be no lessening of alcohol problems until the cost of drink returns to the relative prices of the 1970s(6) . Western Australia, with such an approach, has dramatically reduced binge drinking." ENDs c295 words
FURTHER INFORMATION: Dr Geoff Meaden, Green Party Candidate for Canterbury, address above, or on 01227 456806 (callminder)
Notes:
1. The Guardian (20/11/04) reported that the scientists co-opted to the government study last year have distanced themselves from that report, warning that "their arguments had been sidelined and distorted and that the policies implemented were those proven the least effective." They also "suggested the evidence of Britain's overall drunkenness had been buried to accommodate the powerful drinks industry." Criticisms include: - the government deliberately relying on an outmoded gauge to measure how much we drink. Sir Richard Doll, the founding father of modern epidemiology, who made the link between smoking and cancer back in 1954, together with the world's leading addiction experts, had advised Blair that deaths from liver cirrhosis, a prime indicator used to measure alcohol-related harm, had risen in Britain over 30 years by a staggering 959% among men aged between 25 and 44, and 924% among women of the same age. This was ignored in the PMs report.
2. The Guardian (20/11/04) gives more details while The Guardian (20/12/04) reports: 70 percent of peak-time admissions to hospital A & Es are alcohol-related; 7 percent of adults are reckoned to be dependent on alcohol; 22,000 are the estimated number of premature deaths associated with alcohol every year; 20,000 is the estimated number of drink-drive casualties in 2002; 25 percent of 11- to 15-year-olds who, according to a 2003 survey, had consumed alcohol in the last week; 6m people who drink above the government's recommended daily limits; 1.2m: Number of violent incidents involving alcohol per year;
3. The Royal College of Physicians earlier this month published a devastating report on alcohol-related harm which told of a seven-fold increase in liver deaths in young and middle-aged people since the 1970s. The Academy of Medical Sciences last year suggested Britain had the highest levels of social alcohol-related harm in Europe.
4. Jane's Police Review looked at police opinion for ITV1's 'Tonight with Trevor McDonald' (Reported in The Citizen 4/02/05) and found 62 per cent not in favour of all-hours licensing and 69 per cent saying it will lead to more alcohol created violence. A YouGov poll found half of public against the idea, while Medix UK found 57 per cent of doctors and 59 per cent of nurses opposed.
5. Many councils including Stroud District say the extra charges they can make on licensees will not cover the full costs of administering the scheme.
6. This would imply doubling the price of a £4 bottle of wine and pushing up beer to £5 a pint.
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