Alcohol costs

About time we discussed 'Alcohol' and the problems that come with it ......
Cost = 19 billion in crime incidents resulting from drink ....
More police is needed now to deal with the nightly situations. More ambulances. Now we also need mobile holding wagons, as police stations cannot cope.
This is not a thread on 'Alcoholism' - but the drink problem that causes vandalism - health problems - violence that many of us have to put up with each week .....

Re: Alcohol costs

Alcohol also causes overcrowded A&E departments, especially over the weekends. I have worked there so know 1st-hand. Doctors and nurses are run off their feet, also being badly abused. Drinkers (some of them) get tanked up on alcohol they get cheap from supermarkets before they go out and drink more. Why do the supermarkets sell cheap cider and lager? It isn't helping the problem at all, just making it worse.

Re: Alcohol costs

Yes have seen what the A & E departments have to put up with and ambulance staff, the damage to our society is so great now - it should have been nipped in the bud years ago - we always let things get so out of hand, it becomes a nightmare to solve !

Re: Alcohol costs

Not 100% sure if I am correct in saying that this is the worst European country for alcohol-related problems. I honestly can't see a way of solving it though.

Re: Alcohol costs

Re: Alcohol costs

Yes I agree Stella and I too have experienced first hand the problems facing A&E staff.

Drink related illnesses and drink related crime is spiraling.

Government has made it a stated aim to encourage responsible drinking, setting minimum price on alcohol as well as upholding existing laws on underage sales.
The Department of Health sets guidelines for responsible drinking and warns of the dangers of excessive consumption - as well as footing the bill of alcohol-related illnesses.
The Home Office is responsible for reducing drink-related anti-social behaviour and crime.

Unfortunately, some may say that this is the 'nanny state' interfering with an individual's choice to indulge in their own particular freedoms.

Re: Alcohol costs

I know we have a bad reputation Stella .....
The Europeans, have a good attitude to drink, they still have family dinners at the table and from a young age, their children enjoy a small glass of wine with the family. This, gives the child a better attitude to drink, as they mature, there is no fascination with it, its normal to have a social glass of wine with a meal .....

Re: Alcohol costs

On the news tonight they stated they had lost the battle, and so, had to implement these new measures. So, there is 'nothing' that can be done it seems to stop this crisis that has taken hold.
Oh - they are going to make a charge, for the 'holding' cell .... Whoopee !

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The British have a terrible reputation abroad as being a nation of badly behaved drunks, it's embarrassing to hear it being said because you can't defend the British when you look around and see exactly what they are complaining about.

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They've been saying most of that for years but nothing has changed. Even though there is a minimum price and supermarkets are not supposed to sell the stuff cheaply, they still do mark it down a lot. Why not have it the way it used to be and only off-licences can sell alcohol? Or have we, as people, changed so much that it would be risking life and limb for the proprietor to refuse to sell?