DRINKING AGE ‘TO RISE TO 21’
SNP booze ban for teens in bid to tackle bingeing
THE legal age for buying alcohol could be raised to 21 by the Scottish Government in an attempt to tackle binge drinking.
The move, which would apply in pubs, clubs, supermarkets and off-licences, has been recommended by official NHS advisers. They say more action is needed to tackle the ‘continuing problem’ of ‘hazardous alcohol consumption in young people’. Experts say raising the minimum legal drinking age would be a ‘practical and feasible’ way to improve the nation’s health.
It would bring Scotland into line with some other countries, including the United States, but would create a cross-Border divide if the
drinking age remained at 18 in England. SNP Ministers say they ‘remain open to the consideration of any evidence-based proposals that can contribute to reducing alcohol related harm’.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Health Secretary Shona Robison have both backed earlier proposals to raise the legal drinking age in problem areas.
The SNP previously tried to ban sales to under-21s in some off-licences in 2010 but the move was rejected by opponents.
The recommendation to increase the minimum drinking age to 21 comes from experts at NHS Health Scotland, the Scottish Government’s health promotions agency. They warn: ‘In Scotland, hazardous alcohol consumption i n young people is a continuing problem.’
The NHS Health Scotland papers are based on international evidence on the best and most cost-effective ways to improve health.
Crucially, experts believe that widespread and hard-hitting measures, such as changing legislation, are better than telling people how to live healthy lives, or treating illnesses when they arise.
According to the report Best Preventative Investments For Scotland – What The Evidence And Experts Say, there is ‘relatively strong evidence on the cost-effectiveness of interventions involving regulation, legislation and the use of taxation’.
The report adds that a measure to ‘increase the minimum legal drinking age to 21’ is classed as being among the most cost-effective.
This is because it could reduce future demand on the health service, particularly in Scotland, where ‘rates of alcohol-related mortality are substantially higher’.
The report’s author, NHS Health Scotland principal public health adviser Neil Craig, told The Scottish Mail on Sunday: ‘In Scotland, hazardous alcohol consumption in young people is a continuing problem.
‘For both males and females, the largest increase in hospitalisation rates for alcohol-related conditions since the early 1980s has been in the 15-24 year olds, and this was particularly marked for females.’
Since taking power, the SNP has made tackling alcohol abuse a top priority. But its plans to introduce minimum pricing are now mired in a lengthy court battle, which is unlikely to conclude for at least another year.
Although the Scottish Government says it has no current plans to press ahead with raising the legal drinking age, it would look to alternative measures if the Scotch Whisky Association succeeds with its court battle to block the minimum pricing legislation.
A second paper, produced for policymakers by NHS Health Scotland, states: ‘Further action to regu- late the sale, marketing and use of unhealthy products (such as food, tobacco and alcohol) are all merited.
‘There is a substantial evidence base on how the markets for food, tobacco and alcohol can be changed to respond to the obesity epidemic, to achieve a tobacco-free Scotland and to bring Scotland’s levels of alcohol-related harm down from the highest in Europe.’
A Scottish Government spokesman said last night: ‘We are committed to tackling alcohol misuse and have outlined a package of over 40 measures to do this. These focus on education, diversionary activity, support for families and communities and preventive public health measures such as alcohol brief interventions.
‘Together with minimum unit pricing and regulatory measures on issues such as the irresponsible promotion of alcohol, we believe this wider package will help to create the cultural shift required to change our relationship with alcohol.
‘While we have no plans to change the legal age for drinking alcohol, we remain open to the consideration of any evidence-based proposals.’
‘Hazardous alcohol
consumption’