www.alkoholpolitik.ch

A special committee of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies is expected to vote Tuesday on the “General Law of the Cup” (“Lei Geral da Copa”), but relations between the government and the head of the Federation International de Football Association (FIFA) have completely melted down after macho comments by Secretary General Jérôme Valcke. Last month, Valcke stated “Alcoholic drinks are part of the FIFA World Cup, so we’re going to have them. Excuse me if I sound a bit arrogant but that’s something we won’t negotiate.”

Valcke caused an explosive response in Brazil when he stated on Friday: “You have to push yourself, get a kick up the backside and just deliver this World Cup.“ That arrogant comment led to a powerful response by Brazilian Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo on Saturday, „In light of these statements, which are inadequate and unacceptable comments for any type of relationship, the Brazilian government… no longer accepts Secretary-General Valcke as an interlocutor.“ Brazilian presidential adviser Marco Aurelio Garcia added fuel to the fire Sunday, calling Valcke a loudmouth and a bum (“boquirroto” and “vagabundo”).

In an effort to reduce alcohol-related sports violence and protect public health in general, alcohol sales have been banned from football stadiums in Brazil since 2003. A World Health Organization study that included Brazil showed that about 46% of violent incidents seen in the emergency room were related to alcohol use. …
(Source: Alcohol Justice, 03/06/12)
See also press release by IOGT-International

PS Unfortunately, the special committee of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies has accepted the “General Law of the Cup”. It’s a shame! Now it is up to the parliament.

A major overhaul of guidelines for the safe consumption of alcohol seems to have had no impact on Australians.
Only 5 per cent of the population can identify safe drinking levels nominated in the National Health and Medical Research Council’s guidelines for reducing health risks from alcohol consumption.
The latest guidelines, which were published in 2009, say women and men can reduce their lifetime risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury by having a maximum of two standard alcoholic drinks a day.
(Source: Alcohol Reports, 03/07/12) brisbanetimes.com, 03/06/12

Online comment: Before we can expect people to take notice of and accept drinking guidelines they must know why. But for decades the fields of information and propaganda have been left over to the alcohol industry, which may invest giant sums into advertising and marketing.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the world’s largest promoter of violent cage fighting events and Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABI), makers of the Bud Light family of beers, are delivering harmful content to millions of youth. The underage viewers are treated to people beating one another to a bloody pulp, brought to them by Bud Light…or is it Blood Light?
Protect Youth, Pull the Plug on Bud Light Ads at UFC Fights

In its 2011 announcement of Bud Light’s UFC sponsorship renewal, ABI boasts that it “will continue to immerse the beer into all areas of the world’s premier mixed martial artsorganization.” This includes a thinly veiled effort to target underage youth with graphic violence and sexually explicit ads. According to UFC president Dana White, „…Our target audience is anywhere from age 17 to 35.“ …
(Source: Alcohol Justice, 02/27/12)

Up to 210,000 people in England and Wales will be killed prematurely by alcohol over the next 20 years, with a third of those preventable deaths due to liver disease alone, health experts warned Monday.

Other alcohol-related deaths will be due to accidents, violence and suicide, or from chronic diseases such as high blood pressure, strokes, heart disease and cancer, the experts warned in a projection study in the Lancet medical journal.

Yet Ian Gilmore, former president of the Royal College of Physicians and one of the lead authors of the work, said it was „entirely within the power of the UK government“ to take steps to tackle Britain’s drink problem and „prevent the worst-case scenario of avoidable deaths.“

The experts pointed to measures taken in the former Soviet Union in the 1980s, which they said saw alcohol consumption fall by a third in two years with a resulting 12 percent drop in the rate of alcohol-related deaths.

The warning comes after British Prime Minister David Cameron promised last week to crack down on excessive drinking, calling it a „scandal“ that costs the taxpayer-funded National Health System an estimated 2.7 billion pounds ($4.3 billion) a year. …
(Source: Harvard World Health News, 02/23/12) reuters.com, 02/19/12

If people see news coverage of alcohol’s role in violent crime and fatal injuries, they may give more support to alcohol-control laws, according to a study in the March issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. It’s estimated that drinking is involved in almost one third of deaths from accidents and violent crime. But the news reports on those deaths often make no mention of alcohol.

„People have some awareness of the social cost that alcohol can have,“ said the study’s lead author, Michael D. Slater, Ph.D., of Ohio State University in Columbus. „But only a small fraction of news stories on violent crime and non–motor vehicle accidents acknowledge the contributing role of alcohol.“ As a result, many people may not realize how often drinking contributes to accidents off the roadways, as well as to violence, Slater noted.

And that lack of awareness might dampen the public’s support for alcohol-control laws, such as the strict enforcement of underage-drinking laws or prohibitions on serving alcohol to intoxicated customers. …
(Source: Google alcohol news, 02/22/12) innovations-report.de, 02/22/12
Comment: It seems often as if it is the internal policy of medias not to show the role of alcohol. Uninformed people will not ask for stronger alcohol regulations. The alcohol industry is happy. We pay for the immense social costs and have the lack of quality of life.

Press release from Active – Sobriety, Friendship and Peace:

Today is Valentine’s Day and it is also one day of the week for Children of alcoholics (CoA). The awareness week for CoA serves to raise attention for the situation and feelings of the affected, and it serves to make sure the fate of millions of young Europeans is not forgotten and doesn’t remain invisible.

There are 9 Million children and young people in the EU alone who grow up with at least one parent being
alcohol addicted. These children suffer neglect, feelings of shame and self-blame for their parents’ alcohol addiction. They suffer from continuous conflicts in their home and many have to witness and endure violence.

“The problem is big and despite some good and useful steps into the right direction, more can and must be done to prevent destroyed childhoods,” says Andrea Lavesson, President of Active – sobriety, friendship and peace. “Valentine’s Day offers the best opportunity to extent our hearts to embrace the pain and suffering of 9 million innocent children and young people.”

Europe is the heaviest alcohol consuming region in the world, where alcohol is a causal factor in 16% of child abuse and neglect cases. Studies show that CoA are much more exposed to other health risks, to negative influences on their intellectual capacity and their mental health. Research also shows that one third of CoA will become alcohol addicted themselves.

“Children and young people with alcohol addicted parents often live in both emotional and material poverty,”
says Andrea Lavesson from Active.
(Source: Eurocare Newsletter, 02/20/12)

“It is a moral, economic and social imperative to prevent harm, invest into the present of children and young people, into their hopes and dreams. We need a new EU alcohol strategy, evidence-based alcohol policies in the countries; municipalities need to invest in support structures for CoA; schools need effective alcohol policies; teachers need know-how in how to identify children and youth; journalists need to help breaking the taboo that still exists around this issue. And as society we need to make sure that children of alcohol addicted parents feel that they too can have a better life one day.”

Alcohol policy hit the headlines again this week with David Cameron talking tough on the „alcohol scandal“ costing the NHS close to £3 billion per year. Visiting a hospital in north-east England, the Prime Minister spoke of the unacceptable impact of public drunkenness on the NHS and police services across the country.

Cameron called for „innovative“ approaches including „drunk tanks“ to divert the intoxicated from busy A&Es, and for further enforcement from police to tackle alcohol-fuelled disorder. However the Police Federation criticised the calls saying they are already struggling to resource existing workloads.

The Prime Minister has attracted support from health groups for highlighting the issue of cheap alcohol as part of the problem. Cameron has previously sparked speculation that the Government will seek to introduce minimum pricing in the forthcoming national alcohol strategy.

However in truth the strategy is unlikely to set out direct pricing measures beyond the below cost ban due later this year, which is not expected to affect prices under a ‚Duty + VAT‘ definition of cost. But the Government is likely to continue to pursue taxation measures as already outlined and advised by the IFS, but strongly opposed by the on-trade.

Speaking on the issue, Cameron said:
„We are going to look at the issue of pricing. I am quite convinced that there’s deep discounting through supermarkets and sometimes convenience stores of alcohol that is causing part of the problem, but we’re looking at this carefully to try and find the right answer.

The issue has attracted widespread media attention. Channel 4 news explored the alcohol policy issue, highlighting conflicts between alcohol industry voices opposing minimum pricing instead in favour of education – an approach often rejected by health groups as ineffective. A Guardian comment also explored alcohol policy tensions, highlighting the controversial Responsibility Deal and Scotland’s determination to secure minimum pricing and test EU law on the issue. …
(Source: Alcohol Reports, 02/16/12) alcoholpolicy.net, 02/16/12

Alcohol and Youth in Africa, Asia and Europe
Also in this issue:

Alcohol Policy Youth Network / Nigerian Alcohol Prevention Youth Initiative / The IFMSA and the European Alcohol and Health Forum / Jyothirgamaya: Spreading the light of awareness by Ms Deepa Nair / “Alcohol-free Boat Races: the role of youth networks and social campaigns to change social attitudes on alcohol” / Alcohol and the young brain: girls at especial risk? / Teenage alcohol consumption associated with computer use / Alcohol and Unsafe Sex / Cigarette and alcohol use at historic low among US teens / Transatlantic Cooperation to combat underage drinking

Lately a ruling in Denmark – the first of its kind – provides that alcohol has no place in advertising targeted minors. The ruling is a victory for the Consumer Ombudsman, as well as for Alcohol and Society (former Danish Alcohol Policy Network) being the fruit of several complaints throughout the years.
Two years ago in 2008 the Danish Consumer Ombudsman clamped down on youth travel agencies with the law addition of 2006 as his legal basis. He thereby introduced a complete ban on alcohol in marketing targeted minors (below 18). December 2011 the law was put to the test and stood its ground. The court has sentenced the youth travel agency, Dansk Ungdomsferie Aps a 55.000 fine (7.000 Euros) for targeting minors and encouraging alcohol consumption. …
(Source: Eurocare Newsletter, 01/25/12)

Boston mass transit will ban alcohol ads starting July 1. The ban will include subway cars, trains and buses, Boston.com reports.

Joe Pesaturo, spokesperson for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), said the transit line’s advertising contractor has said it expects ad revenue to drop by about $1.5 million in the first full year of the alcohol ad ban.

New York City and Chicago are the only other cities with major public transit systems that allow alcohol ads, according to Michael Scippa, spokesman for the watchdog organization Alcohol Justice. …
(Source: Join Together, 01/25/12)