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The European Commission (EC) produced a draft proposal 'Drinking
by Children and Adolescents' in October proposing tough measures
on the industry to curb underage drinking. Happily in fact, research
just released for England and Scotland shows that under age smoking
and drinking fell for the first time since 1992 in 1998. Officials
stress that the proposals would not be legally binding, but the
codes would be monitored by Governments. The proposals have been
attacked by many in the industry as they believe it could be the
first step towards a ban on alcohol advertising within the EU.
The EC cites alcohol, after tobacco, as the most important risk
factor for human health. The draft programme proposes health promotion
and education for children, parents and teachers at a local, National
and European level and it suggests enforcing existing laws, and
encouraging producers and retailers to apply self regulation.
Joint commercial communication standards have already been formulated
and approved by industry representatives in almost all Member
States, and self regulatory codes already exist in many cases,
such as the Portman Group code of Practice..
The draft paper cites that the industry should not target adolescents
with their products, and that alcohol advertising should be strongly
regulated. It is also suggested that an independent regulatory
body should be set up with enforcement powers to remove offending
products from the shelves. Finally, it is suggested that all activities
should be coordinated within the framework of the World Health
organisation (WHO) and that members should report on the implementation
of the recommendations in 2003. |
