MyShout

Social marketing will get us all in the end - but maybe that's not such a bad thing, says David Elliott

You may not have noticed yet, but the health squads are on the march and they're coming to get you. Don't get me wrong - I agree there's a need to improve our nation's health, and next year's smoking ban will go a long way towards facilitating this, but the effects on our industry don't stop there.

Recent reports highlighting the state of the nation's health in terms of obesity rates, smoking-related deaths and life expectancy have raised serious questions about the impact of cultural diversity on health. Significant variation in life expectancy in England is a matter of real concern and I know that this issue puts the good old British pub under the spotlight yet again. The licensed trade can't take all the blame - nor do we intend to - but in the USA, for example, the obesity rate in Boston, Massachussets, results from larger food portions, cheaper beer and a tendency to use a lot of fat in cooking. As reports produced in this country don't include such information, inspectors will be looking for someone to blame.

So let's stop them targeting pubs!

The government's White Paper on Public Health - the bill behind the smoking ban - introduces the idea of "social marketing". And its next stage is the "National Social Marketing Strategy for Health" - in plain English, that means assisting people to make healthier choices. Social marketing aims to influence behaviour directly - for example, encouraging people to walk in the park rather than have a pint down the pub. This level of change means a lot of adapting.

Through social marketing, people will become more aware of the effects of alcohol and their habits will gradually change. Alcohol consumption and smoking will decrease - and everything pubs stood for in the past will be threatened. Of course we can survive and even thrive in the face of such a challenge, but we must be prepared. In time, saying good bye to our smoky boozers filled with smoke, pints and cheese buns could feel more like a rebirth than the death of tradition.

There is no doubt that pubs can become healthy places offering high-quality menu options. Beer is good in moderation, smoke is bad for us and we all need to eat, so let's meet this new challenge with relish and show that pubs can be part of a healthy lifestyle.

A major repositioning, I know - but still do-able.

Finally, last week's announcement about the latest round of on-trade underage sting operations clearly highlights the industry's failure to combat underage and binge-drinking. There is no excuse for knowingly serving underage drinkers - if you're unsure about their real age, simply refuse to serve them. So much legislation affects our businesses already - and if we don't take responsibility for sorting out this crucial issue, the Government will.

Perhaps each of us should visit our local A&E unit over a typical weekend, when seven out of 10 patients are admitted under the influence themselves or as victims of drunken assaults.

Then - just maybe - we may all become a tad more responsible?