www.alkoholpolitik.ch

The Scottish Government have today announced plans to almost half the drink-drive limit with a new scheme being implemented “as soon as possible”.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said that plans to bring the limit down, from 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood to 50mg, are set to be brought forward.

The announcement comes less than a week after Scotland became the first part of the UK to implement a minimum price for a unit of alcohol under a new binge-drinking bill.

MacAskill said, “The Scottish government has long called for a reduction in the drink-driving limit to 50mg.

“We strongly believe that reducing the drink-driving limit will save lives, and evidence from across Europe shows that alcohol-related road deaths drop dramatically where the limit has been reduced.”

Scottish road safety campaigners have welcomed the plans and said it was a step in the right direction.
(Source: Alcohol Reports, News, 05/28/12) independent.co.uk, 05/27/12

our Online-Comment: It is really interesting what funny reasons are given against this new limit. We have heard them as well when in Switzerland, after a long fight, parliament did this step. It is so simple, even after five years and more the amount of alcohol related accidents and deaths dropped by more than 20%. How anybody can be against this new rule?
Important is of course that many controls by the police are done and especially controls without suspicion. And that punishments with lost driver licences are strong enough.

Young people in Switzerland are consuming twice as much alcohol as was previously believed, with many young adults drinking large amounts at the weekend.
These were the results of a research project supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and presented on Wednesday. Psychologist Emmanuel Kuntsche and his team from the addiction centre Sucht Schweiz in Lausanne conducted a mobile phone survey of 183 western Swiss (86 men and 97 women) aged between 19 and 26. For five weeks the participants had to give hourly updates from Thursday to Saturday on their consumption of alcohol, from early evening to midnight as well as the following morning. At the beginning of the survey they were also questioned on their consumption during the previous 30 days. …
(Source: Google Alcohol News, 05/28/12) bazonline.ch, 05/23/12

Fahrerflucht, Alkohol am Steuer, schwere Nötigung durch Drängeln – Verkehrssünder sollen härter bestraft werden. Dazu will Minister Ramsauer die geplante Reform der Flensburger Kartei noch einmal verschärfen. Für schwere Vergehen gibt es dann drei Punkte – und die wird man so schnell nicht wieder los.
Wer sich volltrunken hinters Steuer setzt oder Fahrerflucht begeht, muss in Zukunft mit einer härteren Bestrafung rechnen: Derartige Straftaten sollen nach dem Willen von Bundesverkehrsminister Peter Ramsauer (CSU) künftig mit mehr Punkten in Flensburg geahndet werden als bisher vorgesehen. Wie Ramsauer in der „Bild am Sonntag“ ankündigte, soll die geplante Reform der Flensburger Verkehrssünderkartei noch einmal verschärft werden. …
(Quelle: Google Alkohol News, 28.5.12) spiegel.de, 27.5.12

In Focus
Alcohol harms you, others and the society – why does Europe need an alcohol strategy? 27 June 2012, European Parliament, Brussels
Finland takes important steps to restrict alcohol marketing
News from Eurocare
Alcohol Focus Scotland: Minimum pricing
NordAN: Conference reminder
EHYT: Cannabis Connotations of an Alcohol Ad cause a stir in Finland
Eurocare Italy: Partnership between Diageo and Italian Automobile Club
DHS: Focus on alcohol and cancer
News from the European Union Institutions
Report from the Chair of the European Alcohol and Health Forum
Presentations from the High Level Conference on EU Health Programmes
Question from MEP: Alcohol consumption in Europe
Question from MEP: Benefits of red wine
Question from MEP: Foetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)
Question from MEP: Wine imports: possible tax increase and imposition of quotas
News from across Europe
Scottish minimum price at 50p per unit
Ireland – Minister to end alcohol sponsorship of sports
Germany – Public Transit Pub: Will Alcohol Bans Stop Party Trains?
News from the World Health Organization
World Health Statistics
New research and reports
ALICE RAP Policy Brief on alcohol: ‘Alcohol – the neglected addiction’
Study on the affordability of alcoholic beverages in the EU
Research shows high level of serving alcohol to inebriated customers
Call for Papers Special Issue on International Perspectives on Alcohol Control Policies in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Upcoming Events ….
(Source: Eurocare, 25/05/2012)

The Scottish Government has passed the Alcohol Minimum Pricing Bill, meaning a 50 pence minimum unit price (MUP) could be in place north of the border by April next year. The Bill requires Royal Assent and still faces the threat of potential legal challenges as warned of by sections of the alcohol industry.

A 50 pence MUP would set a minimum floor price for an average strength bottle of wine at £4.69, vodka at £13.13 a bottle (70cl) and a standard four-pack of lager would need to cost at least £3.52. The Bill sets a minimum price for a unit of alcohol as a condition of licence.

However most drinks would be unaffected, especially those sold in pubs and restaurants. The minimum price would not be raised for at least two years and is reported to include a „sunset clause“. The move is expected to save lives and reduce crime based on evidence linking price and consumption and modelling work by the University of Sheffield.
(Source: Alcohol Policy UK, 05/25/12)

A detailed analysis of the alcohol industry’s submissions to a Parliamentary Inquiry has exposed a raft of false, misleading and unfounded claims.
The damning finding comes as alcohol industry representatives meet in Canberra today to present to the House of Representatives Inquiry into Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), and calls into doubt the veracity of the industry claims.

The Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) analysed four alcohol industry submissions from the Winemakers Federation of Australia (WFA), the Brewers Association of Australia and New Zealand Inc (Brewers), the Distilled Spirits Industry Council of Australia (DSICA) and the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI).

The analysis found that between them, the alcohol industry bodies made a total of ten false or misleading claims regarding FASD, and the effectiveness of interventions to prevent FASD.
Demonstrating a total lack of commitment to preventing FASD, two of the industry submissions even talk down the need for action, suggesting current activities to prevent FASD are sufficient.

FARE Chief Executive, Michael Thorn said it is crucial that none of the industry’s unsubstantiated claims go unchallenged.
“This is not simply ‘claim’ and ‘counter claim’. This is about separating the facts from the industry fiction. The alcohol industry is so hell bent on putting profit ahead of public health that it’s prepared to bend or even disregard the truth completely, to suit its own agenda,” Mr Thorn said. …
(Source: Alcohol Reports, 05/23/12) fare.org.au, Media Release, 05/24/12

24 mai 2012 – Les applications Ricard 3 D et Ricard Mix Codes présentent un caractère intrusif, contraire à la loi EVIN – La Cour d’Appel de Paris ordonne leur retrait de tout support

En juin 2011, la SA RICARD a lancé une campagne publicitaire intitulée Un Ricard des rencontres, relayée par l’intermédiaire d’applications gratuites, constituée de

quatre affiches ou visuels, (les visuels présentent la rencontre du Ricard avec différents ingrédients : eau, glace, grenadine, menthe ; et comportent, à droite, une bouteille de Ricard, en bas au centre, et en gros caractères la mention, en lettres capitales, UN RICARD DES RENCONTRES, et précisant, en haut à gauche, selon le cas : Rencontre # 01 Ricard/eau, Rencontre # 03 Ricard/glace, Rencontre # 34 Ricard/grenadine, Rencontre # 56 Ricard/menthe),

d’un film (il présente, sur fond de musique d’ambiance, des nuages de toutes les couleurs, qui bougent, rappelant les quatre affiches)sur Internet,

L’Association Nationale de Prévention en Alcoologie et Addictologie (ANPAA), a assigné la société RICARD en référé afin de voir ordonner le retrait du film publicitaire sur tout support, la mention Des rencontres associée au nom de Un Ricard ainsi que le retrait et la suppression des applications intitulées Ricard 3D et Ricard Mix Codes, sur tout support, et notamment sur l’Appstore et I Tunes.

Dans un arrêt du 23 mai la Cour d’Appel de Paris renforçant la décision du 5 août 2011 du juge des référés du tribunal de grande instance de Paris fait droit aux demandes de l’A.N.P.A.A. Elle ordonne le retrait: ….
(Quelle: A.N.P.A.A., 24.5.12)

A focus on excise duty pass-through, on- and off-trade sales, price promotions and pricing regulations
Prepared for the European Commission, DG SANCO and the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers Contract Reference N° SC2010 63 06

Policies related to alcohol pricing, promotion and discounts provide opportunities to address harms associated with alcohol consumption. However, there are important gaps in information and knowledge about various policy-relevant aspects of alcohol retail and pricing. This information could help governments to plan their alcohol strategies better and develop evidence-based policies.
To address these knowledge gaps, this report presents findings from our research, which focused on the following four areas of inquiry:
· the link between changes in excise duties and changes in alcohol consumer prices
· the trends in the ratio of on-trade to off-trade consumption of alcohol, and their drivers
· the scale of alcohol price promotions and discounts in the on- and off-trade across the EU
· regulations in Member States on price promotions and discounts, their compliance and effectiveness. …

(Source: DG Health & Consumers website (23-05-2012 full text, pdf) RAND Corporation, Arlington VA 22202, United States)

Junge Erwachsene kippen sich in der Schweiz am Wochenende viel Alkohol hinter die Binde. Wie viel genau, zeigt eine neue Nationalfonds-Studie. Ein Aspekt beunruhigt die Autoren besonders.

In der Schweiz trinken junge Erwachsene wahrscheinlich doppelt so viel Alkohol wie bisher angenommen. Am meisten Alkohol fliesst an den Wochenenden durch ihre Kehlen. An Samstagabenden genehmigen sich Männer im Durchschnitt zwei Liter Bier.

Dies zeigt ein vom Schweizerischen Nationalfonds unterstütztes Forschungsprojekt, dessen Resultate heute vorgestellt wurden. Der Psychologe Emmanuel Kuntsche und sein Team von Sucht Schweiz in Lausanne haben mit einer Mobiltelefon-Befragung das Trinkverhalten von 183 Westschweizern im Alter zwischen 19 und 26 Jahren bestimmt. ….

Quelle: Google Alkohol News, 235312) bazonline.ch, 23.5.12 – Tages-Anzeiger.ch, 23.5.12 – Kuntsche, E., Labhart, F., Investigating the drinking patterns of young people over the course of the evening at weekends. Drug Alcohol Depend. (2012).

unser Online-Kommentar bei blick.ch: Diese Studie ist wohl eher geeignet, die Bevölkerung zu verwirren, als sie für das Problem zu sensibilisieren. Die Politiker werden sich mehrheitlich noch mehr bestärkt fühlen, dass keine wirksamen Massnahmen angebracht sind.
Wissenschafter sind meist nicht daran interessiert, was für Schlüsse Laien aus ihrer Arbeit ziehen.
Ich denke, dass hier keine typischen Rauschtrinker erfasst wurden. Laut Statistik sollen etwa 25% der jungen Männer Rauschtrinker sein. Deren Konsum könnte also gegen vier Mal höher liegen als in dieser Studie ausgewiesen. Und dies sollte den Politikern nun doch zu denken geben.

unser Online-Kommentar bei nnz.ch, 23.5.12: Diese Studie ist wohl eher geeignet, die Bevölkerung zu verwirren, als sie für das Problem zu sensibilisieren. Die Politiker werden sich mehrheitlich noch mehr bestärkt fühlen, dass keine wirksamen Massnahmen angebracht sind.
Wissenschafter sind meist nicht daran interessiert, was für Schlüsse Laien aus ihrer Arbeit ziehen.
Ich denke, dass hier keine typischen Rauschtrinker erfasst wurden. Laut Statistik sollen etwa 25% der jungen Männer Rauschtrinker sein. Deren Konsum könnte also gegen vier Mal höher liegen als in dieser Studie ausgewiesen. Und dies sollte den Politikern nun doch zu denken geben.
Welche Massnahmen wirksam sind, ist längst bekannt. Dass Gesundheitsförderung wenig nützt, ebenfalls.

The European Centre for Monitoring Alcohol Monitoring (EUCAM) has delivered a luke warm response to the Responsible Marketing Pact. The pact was trumpeted to be the first time that common standards would be implemented throughout the EU. The standards would protect young people from undue exposure to alcohol and prohibit marketing being directed at minors. The alcohol industry had claimed that self-regulation is working, and should be expanded.

However AMMIE (Alcohol Marketing Monitoring in Europe) at the EUCAM conference in March, warned against mere „window dressing“ and called for an outright ban on advertising. Their research showed that on average each minor in the 5 countries they researched (Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Bulgaria and Denmark) were exposed to 44 alcohol commercials in 2 months. They noted numerous violations of the 30% rule, whereby advertising should only be allowed where under 30% of the population are minors. In practice, they insist, there is nowhere in Europe where there is a population group consisting of more than 30% minors, meaning that alcohol advertising can go unchecked. …
(Source: Alcohol Policy UK, 05/22/12) EUCAM Newsletter May 2012