WSTA rejects Labour proposals for mandatory industry code

Published: 14 October, 2008

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) has publicly rejected Labour's proposals for a new mandatory code of practice for the drinks trade, saying that more legislation is not the way to tackle the UK's binge drink problem.

In its response to the government's consultation on the laws on alcohol, the WSTA calls for greater enforcement of the current laws on alcohol rather than the introduction of new ones.

The government has outlined in a 26-page document, leaked exclusively to Harpers last week, tough new legislation placing restrictions on the packaging, promotion and sale of alcohol. It also includes a raft of mandatory and targeted conditions on what should be included on the labels of alcoholic drinks.

But Jeremy Beadles, chief executive of the WSTA, said: "Tough talk about action to curb underage drinking means nothing if we don't enforce the laws we have. We do not need more legislation, we need to continue our partnership with Government to create stricter enforcement of our current laws."

The WSTA has published a white paper on enforcement, which it says demonstrates how current laws go unenforced. According to the paper, in 2006, only 8 people under 18 were taken to court for trying to purchase alcohol and only 11 were reprimanded. Only 56 people were cautioned or proceeded against for buying or attempting to buy alcohol for someone underage.

Today is the deadline for responses to the government's consultation.

Harpers is inviting you to join the Alcohol Debate by writing an open letter to your MP. Click here for more details.

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