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We currently have information provided by NordAN (Nordic Alcohol and Drug Policy Network, for the Eurocare meeting in May 2002.
The govenment has commissioned SoRAD, the center for Social Research on Alcohol and Drugs at the Stockholm University, to follow the development of alcohol consumption in Sweden since Sweden entered into the European Union and was forced to make important changes in alcohol policy. The center monitors both the registered and the unregistered consumption.
The latest report has just been released, and it covers the consumption of alcohol in Sweden in 2001 The total consumption of alcohol during 2001 is estimated to 9.1 liters per inhabitant 15 years and older. This is an increase since 1996 by 14 percent. The estimate for 1996 was 8.0 liters. Most part of the increase has happened since 2000, when the estimate was 8.4 liters.
The increase has continued in 2002. The yearly consumption rate in april 2002 is estimated to 9.4 liters. The increase is highest in the consumption of strong beer (above 3.5% alcohol by volume) with 47 percent since 1996, and wine with 43 percent. But also the consumption of spirits has increased lately, after a long period of decline.
The increase is both in registered consumption (sales in restaurants and monopoly stores) and in traveller imports. Since 1998 the domestic sales actually accounted for a greater part of the increase than the unregistered consumption. Traveller imports accounted for over 20 percent of total consumption. The increase will probably continue, since Sweden has accepted to raise the traveller import quotas to general EU level by 2004.
Illegal spirits (home distilled and smuggeled) accounted for less than 5 percent of the total. This is important from the alcohol policy point of view, since the alcohol industry always has claimed that the only way to combat illegal alcohol is to lower the alcohol taxes. This time, a substantial reduction was brought about by a concerted three year effort by customs, police and an information campaign sponsored by both the state and (unwillingly) by the industry. The taxes on spirits, as opposed to taxes on beer and wine, have not been substantially lowered during the last five years.
Smuggling still exists, of course. In an article in the largest newspaper, Aftonbladet, the managers of the retailing monopoly and the restaurant owners association, together with the president of IOGT, ask for tougher measures against illegal organizations that use unemployed and retired persons to go on bus trips to Denmark and Germany to buy large quantities of spirits and bring home to sell. The article calls for legal action against the charter bus companies, when large quantities of spirits are found in the bus and no passenger takes the responsibility for the spirits.
Brewers campaign for lower taxes
The increase in traveller imports since Sweden joined the EU has resulted in continuous lobbying for lower alcohol taxes by the industry. Right now the brewers run an extensive media campaign for lower beer taxes claiming that this would improve public health and reduce youth drinking (of imported beer). Naturally, the most probable effect would be the opposite, increase in drinking both by youth and others. The report from SoRAD on traveller imports shows that these are a great problem in southern Sweden, but virtually nonexistent in the northern provinces. A tax reduction, of course, would stimulate consumption in the whole country.
CAN (the Swedish Council for Information on Alcohol and Other Drugs) performs annual surveys of drinking, smoking and drug habits among school children, 15- 16 years of age, and regular surveys of young men at conscription age (18).
The school survey shows some increase in consumption of alcohol up to 2000, but no substantial changes between the last two surveys. The proportion of students who have experimented with narcotic drugs has increased gradually, and was in 200 1 ten percent among the boys and nine percent among the girls.
The proportion of 18 year old men who have tried narcotics is the highest since 1980, 18 percent answered that they had tried narcotics, which is one percent higher than the average of the 1970s. 1980 the figure was 19 percent, while it was down to 6 percent in 1992. Tobacco was included in the questionnaire for the first time in 2000. 28 percent of the men smoked, 33 percent used snuff. In all 44 percent used tobacco in some form.
14 percent of the young men reported risky drinking according to the AUDIT scale. Theproportion who reported ever having inhaled solvents was an all time low, six percent. The proportion reporting having taken steriods is still low. It has been one percent since 1994.
The State Institute for Public Health is worried about the consumption of regular beer by teenagers. The regular beer (max 3.5% alcohol by volume) is sold in grocery stores and the age limit, 18 years, is not very well upheld by the stores. The Public Health Institute has been given more power to monitor this, and has launched a campaign directed at local municipalities and stores to improve age controls. This is a prioritised issue for the the coming year.
The Swedish law against alcohol advertising is challenged by the Gourmet magazine. The European Court has decided that the law is a restriction on trade in the meaning of the European Treaty, but has left it to the Swedish court to decide if tis intervention into the market is justifiable (proportionate) on the grounds of public health. The city court of Stockholm has decided that it is not, which means that the law has to be changed if this decision is upheld by the higher court. The wording of the city court is rather far reaching. It is an open question if any legal restrictions on alcohol advertising can be maintained if this decision stands. The Consumer Ombudsman, a state agency that is responsible for monitoring the law on advertising, has appealed the decision to the court of marketing, which has the last word.
The reasoning of the Stockholm city court is rather surprising. The court claims that the Swedish alcohol policy has been so weakened by the accession to the EU, that the effect of the advertising restrictions is only marginal, and thus not proportional. To many people the opposite view would seem more reasonable, 1i e that the weakening of some policy measures would make it more important to retain the instruments of alcohol policy that we still have left. Also the court claims that there is so much editorial writing about wines in the papers, that the advertising has no or very little additional effect.
The Consumer Ombudsman has asked for an interim prohibition on alcohol advertising while the case is not finally decided. The reason is that a right wing political magazine (Moderna Tider = Modem Times) has started to publish full page whiskey ads after the verdict of the city court. The marketing court has declined to issue an interim prohibition.
In the November report we mentioned that the government has appointed an "operatioal
committee" (called Alkoholkommitten = the Alcohol Committee) with the task to implement the National Alcohol Action Plan. The committee consists of representatives from different government agencies who are affected by the plan, and has a staff of 5-6 persons. It should, among other things coordinate the work of these agencies.
The committee has started by publishing material, running media campaigns and arranging conferences to inform about the plan. One important target is parents to school children. The committee has established cooperation with, among others, the Mentor foundation, which is an international NGO trying to reduce aldochol consumption among youngsters. The Swedish chapter has the Queen as honorary menber, and is sponsored by a number of large companies.
At the same time, the government has commissioned the State Institute for Public Health to work out a programme for the preventive role of the schools. The report has been worked out in cooperation with the National School Board. The association of municipalities, who are responsible for the scholols, has also been consulted. The report is very good, and contains a thorough overview of the available research on preventive work among young people. It emphasises the crucial role of cooperation with the parents, for the success of the preventive work of the school.
As you know, the world championships of football (soccer) is just about to take place in Japan and Korea. Since the games are played in the morning, Swedish time, some restaurants have applied for permission to serve alcohol before 11 A. M., which is the legal limit.They claim that people who want to watch the games on TV in a restaurant, need to take a beer to fully appreciate the game. Some municipalities have said no, but it seems now that the majority in Stockholm, consisting of the conservatives (who are the dominating party in the local ruling coalition) and the local social democrats, who are in opposition, will grant the permission to the Stockholm restaurants.
This has been critisized on the grounds that it is giving the wrong signal: that sports need alcohol. Many sports leaders try to promote the view that sports should be alcohol free. It is also well known that alcohol consumption among sports spectators has a big role in sports violence.
The Swedish Parliament decided on May 15 that all restaurants must have smoke free areas from January 1,2003. The goal is that all restaurants should be totally smoke free by January 1,2004. The decision also included a ban on indirect tobacco advertising from 2003. The resources for prevention of smoking should be directed at both children and adults. Everyone who sells tobacco has to report that to the municipal authorities. Some of the decisions on tobacco advertising require constitutional legislation, which means that another confirming decision has to be made by the Parliament that will be elected in September this year.
The Swedish Parliament has now also decided on a plan against narcotic drugs. The reason that the Alcohol Action Plan was decided separately, one year earlier, was that it was considered urgent because of the weakening of the Swedish alcohol policy brought about by our accession to the EU. The goal of the narcotics plan is still a drug free society. The public support for this goal is massive. Legalisation or liberalisation of the drug laws has very little support among the general public, and the parties all take very firm stands on this issue in the beginning electoral campaign.
On alcohol policy the situation is different. The present restrictive policy has the verbal support from all parties except the conservatives (who have 20-25 percent in the polls), but in practical decisions on different policy measures, there are differences among the parties. There are also politicians in almost all parties who voice more liberal views than their party on alcohol policy. This is very unusual in the field of drug policy. Proponents of liberalisation or legalisation are only a few independent participants in the public discussion.
The task to coordinate the implementation of the drug action plan is given to a drug coordinator (the move probably inspired by the American concept of a "Drug Czar") with a small staff. The person appointed is a very well respected local politician from the Social Democrats, who has been known for his firm and brave resistance against racist and neo nazi forces in his home community.
For questions and clarifications you are welcome to Gabriel Romanus. My e-mail address is: gabriel.romanus@swipnet.se
1996 - 2005 Eurocare