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Measures to tackle irresponsible drink deals

A ban on 'all you can drink' promotions in pubs and bars is among a range of new measures announced today by Health Secretary Alan Johnson and  Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, supported by a new £4.5 million crackdown on alcohol fuelled crime and disorder.

Following an independent review, which found that many retailers are not abiding by their own voluntary standards for responsible selling and marketing of alcohol, The Government now intends to introduce a new mandatory code of practice to target the most irresponsible retail practices. This will set out compulsory licensing conditions for all alcohol retailers and will give licensing authorities new powers to clampdown on specific problems in their areas. Licensing authorities will also be able to impose these new powers on several premises at once.

• The Government will shortly consult on a range of compulsory conditions including:
• banning offers like 'all you can drink for £10'
• outlawing pubs and bars offering promotions to certain groups, such as women only
• ensuring that customers in supermarkets are not required to buy very large amounts of a product to take advantage of price discounts
• ensuring staff selling alcohol are properly trained
• requiring that consumers are able to see unit content of all alcohol when they buy it
• requiring bars and pubs to have the minimum sized glasses available for customers who want them.

Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships are being awarded a £3 million cash injection to target enforcement activities on specific alcohol-related problems in 190 areas across all police forces. In addition, £1.5 million will be given to a number of priority areas to strengthen their ability to tackle underage sales, confiscate alcohol from under 18s and run communications campaigns to tell people what action is being taken to successfully reduce alcohol related crime and disorder in their local area.

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