The widow of a man beaten to death by a gang of drunken yobs has called for pubs and bars to help end Britain's binge-drinking culture. Helen Newlove, whose husband Garry was killed in front of her and their three daughters in Warrington in August 2007, wants better training for pub workers. Launching a new body, the National Licensed Trade Association, she said stopping alcohol abuse will help cut anti-social behaviour and violence. The NLTA is offering courses for landlords and bar staff to help stop excessive drinking. - UK Press Association
In a letter to the Daily Telegraph 10 directors of public health in the North East have called on the government to "introduce a minimum price per unit of alcohol to tackle cheap drink, which is having a devastating effect on our region". The letter continued: "Research carried out by Balance, the North East Alcohol Office, reveals that across our region, alcohol is available for as little as 12p a unit, cans of lager for just 22p and a two-litre bottle of cider priced at less than a loaf of bread. Armed with £6.24 - the average level of pocket money in Britain - young consumers can buy enough alcohol to drink twice the recommended daily limit for an adult male, every day of the week." - Daily Telegraph
A new commission is to look at ways of tackling Scotland's "love affair" with booze. The body has been set up by the Labour Party to find alternative means of tackling alcohol problems rather than the SNP proposal of minimum pricing. Labour claims that minimum pricing would only line the pockets of supermarkets with an extra £90 million. Instead, it wants the commission to consider a range of proposals, such as a mandatory challenge scheme for people who look under 25 to stop underage drinking; alternative pricing mechanisms, possibly through taxation; Alcohol Treatment and Testing Orders to tackle the problem drinking of offenders; and better enforcement of existing legislation to impose tougher sanctions against premises that sell alcohol to a person who is already intoxicated. They also want restrictions on advertising to protect children from being exposed to alcohol promotions and zero tolerance of drink-driving. - The Scotsman
London councils have said that proposals for blanket late-night drinking bans are not the best way of tackling alcohol-related disorder. Licensing Minister Gerry Sutcliffe has announced that local authorities will be able to stop the selling of alcohol from all premises between 3am and 6am across areas where drink-related disorder and nuisance cannot be tracked to a single establishment. The bans could cover areas as large as city centres, which are affected by alcohol-related anti-social behaviour. The proposed ban would be brought in via the Crime and Security Bill, currently going through Parliament. But London Councils - an umbrella body for local government in the capital - has said authorities should be able to choose when to restrict late night drinking in their local areas, rather than the government handing down one-size-fits-all regulations. - London Government Chronicle