While inappropriate or excessive drinking causes health and social damage, moderate drinking doesn't.

The World Health Organisation states: "There are beneficial relationships with coronary heart disease, stroke and diabetes mellitus, provided low-to-moderate average volume of consumption is combined with non-binge patterns of drinking. For example, it is estimated that ischaemic stroke would be about 17% higher in the Eur-A sub-region [which includes the UK] if no one consumed alcohol" (World Health Report 2002).

It is in the interests of drinks producers to share responsibility for educating consumers, so they know what moderate drinking is. That's why all key UK brands now carry unit information, and why drinkaware.co.uk - a user-friendly website which details how alcohol tolerances vary critically depending on age, sex and other factors - is promoted on brand advertising and at point-of-sale by some supermarkets.

That's also why the leading producers support the work of the Portman Group, which campaigns nationally to target young adults who drink to get drunk. No one can argue any longer that this is a "minority" behaviour, when according to new Home Office research 44% of 18- to 24-year-olds are regular binge-drinkers. And in Scotland, 57% of the same agegroup say that getting drunk at weekends is acceptable.

No one believes that alcohol education, whether for children or adults, will solve the problem of misuse by itself, any more than any other single measure. A combination of legislation (and its rigorous enforcement), self-regulation (as long as it's effective, with sanctions), and public education (which must be generously funded, including by the industry) is needed.

For the industry, the balance of carrot and stick, or the quality of partnership with government, will depend on how genuine they are seen to be about practising social responsibility as a core business driver. The UK needs nothing short of a cultural revolution in how we drink and how we think about drinking.

Jean Coussins is chief executive of the Portman Group info@portmangroup.org.uk

  |terug|mail|print|top|