SMITH CALLS FOR MORE RESPONSIBLE ADVERTISING TO MARK ALCOHOL AWARENESS WEEK
October 6, 2009 12:00 AM
North East Fife Liberal Democrat MSP Iain Smith is marking alcohol awareness week by calling on ministers and policy makers to encourage more responsible alcohol marketing to help bring about the culture change needed to tackle Scotland's damaging relationship with alcohol.
Alcohol awareness week runs from 4th - 10th October and aims to raise awareness of the dangers of alcohol abuse and encourage responsible drinking across Scotland.
Commenting, Mr Smith said:
"I fully support alcohol awareness week. It is vital that we do more to raise awareness, particularly amongst young people, about the dangers of alcohol abuse, so I am pleased to see the Alcohol Awareness roadshow will be present at St Andrews University on October 9th.
"The figures from the Scottish Ambulance Service highlight just how widespread and damaging the effects of alcohol abuse are in Scotland.
"Alcohol related call-outs are largely preventable if, as a nation, we can adopt a more responsible approach to alcohol consumption.
"Key to achieving this will be targeting the bad practice of "pre-loading" where people get drunk at home before going out to clubs and bars. Ministers and the alcohol industry itself must do more to discourage this irresponsible drinking habit.
"A good first step would be to see an increase in marketing campaigns promoting responsible drinking. Partnerships between Government, Fife Council, alcohol producers and supermarkets could be very effective in creating widespread advertising discouraging irresponsible drinking.
"The SNP Government's new legislative plans will get nowhere close to addressing the root causes of why people drink to excess.
"The Government should instead focus on creating the culture change needed to tackle Scotland's battle with the bottle and using existing laws to crack down on irresponsible retailers and bars."
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