UK - Britain's drinks industry launches £100m “Campaign for Smarter Drinking”

Under the slogan "why let good times go bad?", the campaign gives "practical tips" for safe drinking. The campaign is supported by 45 companies and aims to advertise throughout England.

The industry campaign was launched on the day MPs heard more evidence on the use of alcohol from the government's chief medical adviser, Sir Liam Donaldson, who wants to see a minimum price for alcohol to curb consumption.

The campaign is intended to run for five years. It aims to emphasise the benefits of "responsible enjoyment" and offer practical tips about eating and drinking water while out and thinking about getting home.

The adverts will appear outside, in bars and at cashier desks. The slogans will also appear on millions of bottles and cans of drink.

Government ministers have said they will support the campaign for one year, with further support conditional on an independent analysis of its effectiveness.

Home Secretary Alan Johnson said: "This campaign will complement the wide range of actions we are already undertaking to address binge drinking, including giving police more tools and powers to tackle disruptive drinkers and consulting on new rules to ensure that businesses that sell alcohol are doing it responsibly."

Commenting on the news Don Shenker, Chief Executive of Alcohol Concern said:

“The drinks industry has a very poor track record of adhering to Government agreements to raise alcohol awareness. Both in terms of previously agreed funding for the Drinkaware Trust and labelling of alcohol products, the drinks industry fell far short of intended targets. This new initiative appears to be yet another example of the drinks industry trying desperately to avoid mandatory legislation to pass on health information to consumers.

Government would serve the interests of consumers better by legislating to ensure that alcohol retailers clearly display unit and health information on the risks of excessive drinking. What this initiative is offering consumers is a poor substitute. Drinkers should all be able to make healthy informed choices about our drinking; we urge the government to use the powers it would gain through the new Mandatory Code on Alcohol Sales rather than once again rely on the promises of the drinks industry"