Typical British malaise

It is depressing that even when the BMJ recruits an opinion on the UK’s alcohol problems from outside the UK,¹ the barren response is the same as for so many of our pressing national issues—ban it, exclude it, repair it, or tax it to the level of inaccessibility. Why are we ever more incapable of looking at the roots of a problem—whether it is social violence, failing education, Clostridium difficile infections on wards, paedophilia, or other ills—and trying to remedy them. Weren’t we always taught at medical school that prevention is better than cure?

We are supposed to be part of a European community, within which alcohol taxes are generally low because most citizens have a responsible approach to alcohol. A few Nordic countries, Britain, and Ireland are exceptions. Our culture of “let’s go out and get pissed”—widely admired here, even if secretly—is alien to people in mainland Europe.

What is the problem in attacking that culture and changing it if we sincerely believe that the problems of alcohol merit it, perhaps with a sustained campaign in schools? Why shouldn’t we levy an immediate £100 fine for public drunkenness if blood alcohol concentrations are over, say, 250 mg/100 ml? If there was the will to send out strong messages, then attitudes could be changed rapidly. Moreover, the present government is not shy of engaging in social engineering, so is it simply laziness that stops it dealing with the roots of this problem? The possibility of vested interests is a matter for further speculation.