Enforcement alone ‘won’t solve underage drinking problem’

Laws designed to tackle underage drinking are not being used to their maximum effect, according to a new report commissioned by the alcohol industry’s Portman Group.

The report, ‘Lost Orders?: Law Enforcement and Alcohol in England and Wales’ by Dr Fiona Measham, of Lancaster University, and research consultant Dr Phil Hadfield, enquires whether laws in the UK relating to the sale and consumption of alcohol are ‘fit for purpose’ and if they are being effectively enforced.

The study, based on interviews with 32 people working in key sectors, from pubs and clubs to magistrates’ courts and police forces, found evidence that some laws were considered impractical and were not being regularly enforced – for example, prosecutions against young people for underage drinking were particularly rare. But the research also concluded that enforcement alone would not solve the UK’s drinking problems.

Dr Fiona Measham said:
“In relation to certain offences, notably underage drinking, proxy sales and the serving of alcohol to intoxicated persons, our research found a clear propensity amongst enforcement agencies to target the suppliers of alcohol, rather than the consumers. In general, our interviewees regarded the prosecution of members of the public for breaches of the Licensing Act 2003 to be too expensive and time consuming to pursue. There was a perception that the courts would not support such prosecutions, or that the fines imposed would be minimal. Also, the commitment of resources required to obtain the necessary evidence for conviction was seen as disproportionately great.”

Dr Phil Hadfield said: “One of the main messages of our findings is that there seems little point in Government introducing new tough sounding measures to tackle alcohol-related harms in the community if these laws are not actually enforced in practice. The rush to introduce new legislation has occurred at the expense of ensuring that the laws we already have are being implemented and effectively used.” The report concludes that enforcement is necessary, but not sufficient, in that it is unable to address the causes of unlawful or excessive demand for alcohol.

The research suggests that wide-ranging local partnerships - made up of agencies from police and primary care trusts to public transport providers and private security industry representatives - could be best placed to minimise harm from alcohol misuse.

Dr Measham said:
“We found enforcement powers alone could only operate as ‘sticking plasters’ to bigger challenges regarding the role of alcohol in British society, which individual agencies could not be expected to address. Shifting the legislative balance away from the current focus on crime and disorder and towards greater inclusion of health priorities was regarded as having clear benefits for partnership working. “For example, the more progressive agencies had adopted an ‘advise and educate’ approach in their dealings with licensed outlets, the aim being to establish relationships of trust wherein problems with customers could be reported without the fear of reprisals in terms of incidents being used as ammunition with which to review their licence.

“Our research underlines the importance of allowing space for local innovation, with bespoke initiatives, in order to provide ‘local solutions to local problems’.”