The drinks industry has received a great deal of bad publicity in recent years because of an increase in late night violence linked to the abuse of alcohol by young people. The breakdown in law and order was so worrying that the Oireachtas passed legislation last year aimed at controlling under-aged drinking and penalising publicans who sold drink to inebriated customers.
Now, the drinks industry itself is seeking positive publicity by drawing up a code of practice for its members and promising to name and shame those who break the rules.
The new code of practice updates 1996 guidelines and deals with the naming, packaging and promotion of alcoholic drinks. A body entitled Mature Enjoyment of Alcohol in Society Ltd (MEAS), which is funded by the industry, will accept complaints from the public, liaise with the companies involved and forward dossiers to a five-person independent complaints panel which will then make and publish findings.
Any initiative that helps to minimise the abuse of alcohol in our society, particularly amongst young people, must be welcomed. But self-regulation of the kind proposed has a poor success rate. On a cursory reading, television commercials for some companies already infringe the spirit, if not the letter, of the code of practice which bans any suggestion of a linkage between alcohol and social, sporting or business success or popularity, or any association with sexual success or prowess. The code also directs that promotional material should not have a particular appeal to under 18s nor make use of young people to suggest the products can enhance mental or physical capabilities. Publicans, the National Off-Licence Association, the Irish Hotels Federation, the big supermarkets and all the major drinks companies have undertaken to abide by the code.
The idea of a code of conduct is positive. But it will not have any impact on the current levels of alcohol abuse unless its implementation hurts some vested interests. It is less than a year since the National Off-Licence Association campaigned successfully against a move by the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, to identify those outlets that sold drink to under-aged persons through the marking of all alcohol containers. Three years earlier, a similar provision in the Intoxicating Liquor Act was never signed into law.
As part of its stated aim to sell and market alcohol in a socially responsible way, MEAS has announced that the use of sporting heroes will be banned in advertising aimed at young people. That is a good start. But much more needs to be done to convince a sceptical public.