Paul Chase: 'There's no evidence of an 'alcohol epidemic' in this country'
And they've had some success: the proposition that police recommendations at licensing review must be accepted isn't being taken forward; magistrates will continue to hear appeals. But the government is pressing ahead with most of its other proposals and a lot of lobbying remains to be done.
Given that these proposals are an exercise in trying to fix something that isn't broken you have to ask why the government thought them necessary. I suspect the government itself believes some of the myths perpetrated by those with an ideological objection to alcohol. The first casualty of ideology is the truth, and so we must answer the intellectual case put by medical temperance, which has gone largely unchallenged until recently.
An example: Before the general election a significant report on social exclusion was undertaken by Conservative researchers on behalf of Iain Duncan-Smith. It had some interesting things to say about alcohol pricing which were strangely at odds with what Mr Duncan-Smith himself had to say. Before the election, he declared that alcohol was now cheaper than ever, and that the government would be justified in levying a large increase in alcohol duties to discourage alcohol consumption, and reduce what he called the "epidemic of alcoholism in our country". And so the Labour government's alcohol duty escalator remains.
Well, I read Mr Duncan-Smith's report and what it actually said about alcohol prices - since 1984 alcohol prices have risen by 24 per cent more than inflation. So, in fact alcohol is now more expensive than ever before! However, over the same period wage inflation exceeded price inflation by 91 per cent, so, it would be true to say that alcohol was more affordable than 15 years ago - but only if you're on average wages or above. If you are a pensioner, on benefits, or if you're a student deeply in debt and surviving on a pittance, then alcohol is neither cheaper nor is it more affordable.
Actually there's no evidence of an "alcohol epidemic" in this country. In fact alcohol consumption per head of population has fallen by 10 per cent since 2005 and in the on-trade it is down by 17 per cent per person over the same period. Alcohol-related violent offences have decreased too - down every year since 1995, with the exception of 2003.
The gap between myth and reality is still huge. If we are to persuade the government to legislate less and allow room for more self-regulation, then we must all strive to close this gap.
