Cheap and unrestricted alcohol sales need to be curbed to tackle antisocial behaviour and health problems according to a Member of the House of Keys.
Castletown MHK Richard Ronan hopes a Tynwald committee can be set up soon to look into the social and financial costs of alcohol and its impact on crime and healthcare costs in the island.
Mr Ronan said: ‘This is something I’ve been keen on addressing for some time because it is something we have to address.’
He also wants to see current licensing laws reviewed and said particular attention should be paid to the high number of off-licence shops concentrated in some areas around the island.
‘My main concern is as a father of three young children and the social impact of alcohol, and it is an issue that affects many towns, not just Castletown.
‘The last thing I want is to be seen as a killjoy. I enjoy a pint myself,’ he said.
He said he had two main areas of concern, one being the easy availability of very strong alcohol at cheap prices and the other being unsupervised drinking which prevails when people buy alcohol at the off-licence shop.
‘Some of the alcohol readily available is eight per cent and it is not strictly regulated,’ he explained. ‘It means sometimes people drink and do not fully appreciate the effect. There needs to be some kind of checks and balances.
‘And you only have to read the paper to realise how much crime it seems to play a part in and the incidents at Noble’s A and E.’
Mr Ronan said he was anxious not to create a ‘nanny state’ but felt the high alcohol content of some drinks and so-called alco-pops did not help.
‘Weaker drinks simply do not seem to create the same effect,’ he said.
‘But I can’t pretend to have the answer. It’s a problem across the Western World and my big concern is the social impact. I think it needs to be looked at.’
Mr Ronan said he felt some sort of graded pricing structure governed by how strong or weak a particular alcoholic product was may well help with the problem. ‘The weaker it is the cheaper it should be, and the stronger the more expensive,’ he said.
Pubs also have an important role to play in regulating customers’ drinking and helping to ensure sensible and safe alcohol intake, he said, but he feared their role was being sidelined as more people chose to use the off-licence and drink in an uncontrolled environment.
‘The price of alcohol at the beer pumps is driving people away from the pub more than the smoking ban now,’ he said.
‘As a government we need to look at this and adopt a common sense approach.
A spokesman for the young people’s alcohol support service Motiv8, which focuses on helping people between the ages of 12 and 21, said they had a dedicated young people’s worker and the service went beyond simply helping people with an alcohol addiction. Deputy director Lyndsey Smart said: ‘We also deal with education, harm reduction and helping people who may have problems with other family members’ drinking.
‘While there may be benefits to pricing restrictions, it is important to recognise that a large proportion of young people are likely to experiment with alcohol regardless of its price and can be resourceful in their ways and means of obtaining alcohol.’
Home Affairs Minister Juan Watterson MHK said his deparment was currently reviewing the 20-year-old licensing laws and account would be taken of Mr Ronan’s concerns. The review should be complete by 2016 and will also take account of views from the licensing forum, which includes on and off-licence holders and police.
Mr Watterson said licensing problems have reduced. In 2011-12 there were 564 licensing offences, dropping to 445 in 2012-13 and 353 in 2013-14.