Drink – have we all had enough?

Feb 12 2008 by Matthew Mckenzie, The Journal

Ever-increasing statistics make grim reading

HUNDREDS of people in the North East are dying from alcohol-related conditions a year – with the numbers soaring over the past decade.

Some 323 deaths in the region with an alcohol- related underlying cause were recorded in 1997 but that number has since risen to 435 in 2006, the latest figures available show. And while there have been slight falls over the past decade, the overall trend in terms of alcohol-related deaths appears to be on an upward spiral.

The figures dropped back to 307 in 1999 but rose to 326 in the following year in the North East. The death toll increased to 426 in 2004 and dropped to 402 in the region in 2005 but the figures jumped to 435 in 2006, according to the figures released by the Office of National Statistics in response to a parliamentary query for the Government on the issue by Darlington MP Alan Milburn. In Mr Milburn’s own constituency, the figures have seen a similar pattern, ranging from 13 deaths in 1997 before dropping to nine in 2003 and then rising to 17 in 2006.

The rise has been mirrored nationally.

In England, there were 4437 deaths in 1997 but 6,517 in 2006. The death toll in Wales jumped from 294 to 430 and from 1,061 to 1,546 in Scotland over the same period.

And in Northern Ireland, 248 people died from an underlying alcohol- related condition in 2006 compared to 152 in 1997.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cost of booze is linked to problem

SUPERMARKETS have been accused of fuelling alcohol- related problems through cheap drink promotions.

Kevan Martin, chairman of the North East Regional Alcohol Forum, said: "There has been a massive rise in the number of people drinking at home because of the cheap prices that are available in supermarkets."

The warning comes after official figures revealed 135 licences have been provided to companies in the North East offering access to alcohol around the clock – including supermarkets that are open 24 hours a day.

Mr Martin said: "People are drinking at dangerous levels and do not always recognise it. This is the most dangerous drug of all. It is killing four times as many people as the illicit drugs."

Supermarket giant Tesco said alcohol-related problems were a serious concern but warned it was misleading and simplistic to connect those to low prices and promotions.

The company said its research showed most people buy alcohol as part of the weekly family shop with drink sales falling when they purchase promotions, suggesting shoppers stocked up rather than drank more.

A spokesman added that UK prices were higher than in Mediterranean countries, which did not suffer similar problems, unlike Scandinavia where drinks cost more but difficulties around alcohol persisted.

Information on drinking levels was provided on Tesco’s own-label products.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Police chief hits out

NORTHUMBRIA Police chief Mike Craik has launched a stinging attack on the drinks industry and called for the Government to outlaw cheap offers.

Mr Craik said he has grown tired of watching the effects of too much drink in Newcastle and the North East and wants the Government to make a stand.

He yesterday called on national decision- makers to back his zero-tolerance approach to drink-related crime.

"I think the Government should take the bull by the horns and impose minimum prices.

"You should not be able to get two drinks for the price of one in the pub and you should not be able to go into a supermarket and buy cans of lager cheaper than they cost to make."