Drunk and disorderly

Feb 25 2008 by Andrew Baldwin, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

BINGE drinking and its ramifications is one of the hottest issues of the moment.

Currently it is an offence for licensees and shop keepers to sell alcohol to under 18s.

Yet the law is so ineffective there were almost 7,000 under-18s in alcohol treatment programmes last year.

And almost 5,000 were taken to court or fined for being drunk and disorderly in the past 12 months.

It’s not solely about anti-social behaviour, but a serious health issue too.

The number of people under the age of 30 suffering serious liver damage caused by alcohol abuse has reached almost epidemic proportions.

A suggestion today by Kirklees Liberal Democrats to increase test purchase sting operations can only be supported as one way of trying to address the problem.

But charging more for drink is not the answer as it would punish the vast majority who handle alcohol responsibly. And those who want it will still get it whatever the cost.

Taking drugs or tobacco as examples, people will pay whatever is demanded.

In many other countries in Europe where the price of booze is far cheaper than here you don’t see this drunkenness going on.

Education is the answer – especially in discipline and moral values.