UK Government “too close to drinks industry”

MPs’ report calls for radical overhaul of alcohol policy – but Government rejects main recommendations

The drinks industry and supermarkets hold more power over UK government alcohol policies than do expert health professionals, according to the All Party House of Commons Health Select Committee.

In an eagerly awaited report published in January 2010 after a year’s investigation, the Committee concluded that the drinks industry is dependent on hazardous and harmful drinkers for three quarters of its sales and that if people drank ‘responsibly’, alcohol sales would plummet by 40%.

The Committee went on to make a series of recommendations including the introduction of minimum pricing, a rise in the duty on spirits and industrial white cider, tighter and totally independent regulation of alcohol promotion, vastly improved alcohol treatment services, better early detection and intervention, a mandatory labeling scheme for alcoholic drinks, and much better use of expert advice.

‘Passive Drinking’

The MP’s report, which appeared before the 2010 general election and which therefore relates to the previous government, laid heavy emphasis on what is sometimes referred to as ‘passive drinking’. In this they were clearly infl uenced by the evidence presented to them by the Royal College of Physicians which stressed the impact of alcohol harm on third parties as distinct from the drinkers themselves. In their evidence, the Physicians stated that “The passive effects of alcohol misuse are catastrophic – rape, sexual assault, domestic and other violence, drink driving and street disorder – alcohol affects more innocent victims than passive smoking.”

The MPs were also clearly influenced by the evidence presented to them that the alleged protective effect of alcohol in relation to heart disease was not a reason to shy away from tackling the adverse health impact of alcohol, which, they showed figures (see opposite page) to demonstrate, outweighed any positive, protective effect.

Alcohol Marketing

One of the MP’s main recommendations was for a further crackdown on alcohol advertising and promotion of alcohol. The Committee of MPs was assisted in its consideration of the alcohol issue by Professor Gerard Hastings, who analysed a sample of internal marketing documents from four alcohol producers and their communications agencies. These included client briefs, media schedules, advertising budgets, and market research reports.

Professor Gerard Hastings and colleagues showed that companies were “pushing the boundaries” of the advertising code of practice and warn that the UK system of self regulatory controls for alcohol advertising was failing. The authors looked at four themes that are banned by the advertising code of practice, such as appealing to people under 18 and encouraging irresponsible drinking, as well as sponsorship and new media.

They found that market research data on 15 and 16 year olds is used to guide campaign development and deployment, while many references are made to the need to recruit new drinkers and establish their loyalty to a particular brand.

Professor Hastings maintained that “the self-regulatory codes do not protect young people, they just hone the advertisers’ skills either in camoufl age or creativity”.

The alcohol industry spends around £800m (€900m; $1.3bn) a year promoting alcohol in the UK.