Weekend round-up: Turn down the volume to combat binge drinking

Published: 17 November, 2008

The Guardian
Diageo, which makes Smirnoff and Guinness, has confirmed it is in discussions with Vijay Mallya, the well connected Indian billionaire owner of Kingfisher beer, about a partnership deal which the British firm hopes will help it better access the subcontinent with its whisky brands."Diageo can confirm it is reviewing a collaboration with United Spirits. There is no certainty at this stage that these discussions will result in a transaction," the company said last night. A deal is likely to involve the London-listed firm taking a stake in Mallya United Spirits. Reports in the Indian media suggest Diageo will acquire close to 15% of the company.

Mail On Sunday
The Government's latest proposal to combat Britain's binge-drinking epidemic is to turn down the volume of music in pubs and bars. Landlords could be forced to outlaw all entertainment louder than 70 decibels - roughly the same as a hairdryer - to curb alcohol-fuelled violence and anti-social behaviour. A Labour taskforce has been persuaded by research which showed that loud music in pubs made customers buy more alcohol and drink it faster. At present, there is no set noise level for licensed premises, the only stipulation being that if pubs want to host live bands, they must make a formal application to the local council. But researchers found that deafening music speeds up drinking patterns by drowning out conversation and arousing the brain.

Sunday Telegraph
After a month of fresh air, smoking has been allowed once again inside the city's 11 casinos. The City Council passed a total smoking ban in April but the financial meltdown led to a steep decline in takings at the casinos. The council has now changed its mind and agreed to repeal the smoking ban for at least a year. Under the ban, the casinos could set up ventilated smoking lounges where gamblers could light up away from the slot machines and gambling tables.

The Scotsman
Controls on alcohol advertising should be extended to the internet as part of the drive against under-age drinking, a conference in Edinburgh will be told this week. Jack Law, chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland, claims alcohol is being actively promoted on social networking sites like Facebook. And he will tell a conference organised by the Advertising Standards Authority at Dynamic Earth on Monday that these websites represent a challenge to the current system of regulating alcohol advertising. Mr Law quoted examples of messages posted on the official Facebook page of Smirnoff.

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