Government body wants alcohol rethink

The Australian National Council on Drugs has developed a plan aimed at stemming the problems associated with alcohol abuse.

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It's good enough for Olympians and Wallabies - and now an advisory panel wants the entire nation to reassess its attitude towards alcohol.

In the latest bid to curb the impact of alcohol abuse on the community, the Australian National Council on Drugs (ANCD) on Wednesday put forward a series of recommendations to the federal government aimed at tackling the issue.

Citing a study which revealed one in three Australian drinkers consumed alcohol with the primary purpose of getting drunk, the ANCD said the impact of alcohol abuse had reached "unacceptable levels of crime, violence, health harms and family disturbance".

"The health, social and economic costs associated with alcohol use simply cannot be allowed to continue at the current level," chairman Dr John Herron said in a statement.

"We all understand that the culture of drinking and intoxication has a long history in Australia and we all agree that these levels of harm are unacceptable.

"However, whenever we speak of culture change the industries that profit most from this culture run the same old fear campaign of a nanny state takeover.

"Seatbelts, random breath tests and gun laws do not represent a nanny state and nor do sensible alcohol policies and programs."

It is a shift in thinking which has already been adopted by sporting organisations, given the tough stance taken on alcohol consumption by the Australian Rugby Union and Australian Olympic team.

Wallabies coach Ewen McKenzie stood down six players as a result of an alcohol-fuelled bonding session during the current tour of Europe, while Australia's 2016 Olympics team chef de mission Kitty Chiller said alcohol would be banned for athletes in the Olympic village.

But while both the Wallabies and AOC are doing their best to protect the image of their organisations, the ANCD's recommendations are attempting to address far more serious issues - particularly among the nation's youth.

The study found that while young people generally drank less often, when they did so they were more likely to consume at risk levels.

Nearly two in three adults under the age of 30 said they would drink specifically to get drunk, while 60 per cent of 12-17 year-old students admitted to consuming alcohol in the past year.

According to the report, one in eight deaths of young people under 25 were now attributed to alcohol.

Included in the recommendations put forward to the government was the encouragement of debate on the legal drinking age, though greater education of the dangers of alcohol abuse is the cornerstone of the report.

The government itself does not escape unscathed, with a call for the implementation of an independent body to review and regulate alcohol advertising and promotion.


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Source: AAP


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