The time for prevarication is past. The Government has received a plethora of reports in recent years concerning the social damage being caused by alcohol abuse among young people. But little has been done, apart from banning cut-price drink promotions and modernising the law on the sale of alcohol to under-aged and intoxicated customers. Now, a report from the European Commission confirms that voluntary advertising codes and self-regulation by the drinks industry are not working.
Problems with alcohol are not confined to young people. Parents and adults can be equally unhinged by their dependency on this drug. Ireland heads the European league in terms of alcohol consumption. And there has been a 50 per cent increase in alcohol addiction among the under-25s in recent years. All this is reflected in the unacceptable number of deaths on our roads and in a high suicide rate.
The EU report finds that existing controls on the marketing and advertising of alcohol are ineffective in reducing pressure to drink on young Irish people. For so long as advertising reinforces the link between drinking, socialisation and peer approval, that pressure will remain. Across Europe, about 10 per cent of female deaths and 25 per cent of male deaths in the 15 to 29 age-bracket are alcohol-related. The younger you start to drink, the more damage is caused. France has responded by banning all drinks advertising on television. Alcohol-related harm has been reduced. And other countries are preparing to ban drinks advertising before 9pm.
Some months ago, an Oireachtas committee observed we were in a state of national denial concerning the extent and seriousness of alcohol abuse. And then it confirmed its own observation by failing to recommend a ban on drinks advertising on television. Instead, it suggested sports organisations should cut their sponsorship links with the industry and spoke of breaking the link between healthy activities and alcohol promotion.
The drinks industry will argue that the voluntary regulatory system is working because the number of complaints has been falling. It will also point to a reduction in overall alcohol consumption. The reality, however, is that the proportion of young people at risk is rising. And binge drinking has become the norm among young adults. As a society, we are in serious trouble through the abuse of alcohol and recreational drugs. If we do not protect our young people against insidious advertising, the situation will worsen. A ban on television advertising for alcohol products before 9pm is the minimum required. Political courage would bring an outright ban.