Should there be an increase in tax on alcohol?

[Sput]

Depends who you ask, I guess. I do, families probably do.

[Nini]

All the economics knowledge you need can be acquired not in those ivory towers of practically useless elitists but in the sprawling natural theatres of the university of life! We don't need facts, figures or rational thought, suspicions are proof enough!

Dog bless England.

[Alexia]

"Politicians only deal with problems that wouldn't exist if they didn't exist."

[pad]

I read the first four pages then my eyes got a little tired so I apologise if I'm just regurgitating what somebody else has already posted but:

I really don't think increasing tax and upping the minimum ages of things is the way to help solve anything. If you take a look at other countries, many have lower drinking/smoking ages (usually around 16) and yet haven't got the problem we have in this country. Of course, countries like Italy with low ages like this are starting to feel the effects of binge drinking, but still it is in a better state than the UK.

The fact is, most kids smoke and drink as an act of rebellion, or to fit in. It's all about the education and perceptions of these things, that's really the root of the problem. The government's solution to everything is to make it more difficult, be it by upping prices or upping minimum ages, and this spans from everything from drinking to smoking to leaving school to driving.

It's a sad state of affairs, and obviously changing perceptions and educating some members of society is a difficult, bordering on impossible task. Rumours have flown about the age being upped further to 21, which will be absolutely disgusting if it happens.

It'd just be like, "so, I can join the Army, get married, move home and leave school at... sixteen, but I can't smoke or vote for my country until I'm.... eighteen or drink at my reception or in my flat until I'm... twenty-one. I get charged adult fares on buses and tubes at sixteen... but can't realistically drive until I'm... eighteen."

Yeah, makes so much sense.

[Sput]

It'd just be like, "so, I can join the Army, get married, move home and leave school at... sixteen, but I can't smoke or vote for my country until I'm.... eighteen or drink at my reception or in my flat until I'm... twenty-one. I get charged adult fares on buses and tubes at sixteen... but can't realistically drive until I'm... eighteen."

Of course, by the time you'd explained the situation with all of those ..., several years would have passed so it's not such a big problem for you.

[Stuart*]

I see that the government policy to reduce rampant hordes of wine swilling citizens filling the streets is being hampered by one of the country's favourite loyalty cards!

I tsk'd on receipt of this email promotion yesterday, of course :roll:

[Gavin Scott]

How many hoodies do you know that collect nectar points?

I tsk at your misuse of a tsk.

[davidmcg]

I'm 17, collecting tecso points on my ''purchases'', nothing wrong with it, Tesco is very happy to take my custom

[Sput]

Not just happy, VERY happy. Checkout attendants flock to him offering him garlands of fresh herbs and flowers when he enters.

[Nick Harvey]

So how many Clubcard points do you get when you buy one of those hoodie things in Home'n'Wear?

[Mr Q]

I don't think this can quite be declared a zombie thread yet, so I think I'm safe to revive it. Anyway, our government has decided that, such is the alarm about binge drinking (it's an epidemic, you know), that we should consider sticking graphic health warnings on all alcoholic beverages.

Bottles of alcoholic drinks could soon carry graphic pictures warning of the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption as part of the Federal Government’s latest series of measures to cut down on under-age and binge drinking.

[…]

Labels on alcohol containers could mimic the graphic pictures on cigarette packets that are intended to scare people off smoking by showing them photographs of gangrenous limbs and ulcerated mouths.

The Federal Government is on a crusade against binge and under-age drinking. Earlier this month Mr Rudd said he wanted to “scare the living daylights” out of binge-drinking teenagers with a graphic Grim Reaper-style advertising campaign warning of the health risks of excessive alcohol consumption.

Just thought I'd share this example of fine leadership with you all... Frankly, I'd rather the tax hike myself than to see photos of diseased livers on my beer, but that's what we get for supporting a nanny state down here.