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Police seize teenagers' alcohol | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Police confiscated 44,000 pints of alcoholic drinks during a crackdown on under-age drinking in February. | Police confiscated 44,000 pints of alcoholic drinks during a crackdown on under-age drinking in February. |
The 25,000 litres of drinks - mainly beer and cider - were seized during a two-week operation involving 39 forces in England and Wales. | The 25,000 litres of drinks - mainly beer and cider - were seized during a two-week operation involving 39 forces in England and Wales. |
It was the largest ever enforcement operation of its kind, with alcohol seized from more than 5,000 youths. | It was the largest ever enforcement operation of its kind, with alcohol seized from more than 5,000 youths. |
Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker said the public wanted police to "choke" the supplies of alcohol to youths. | |
The Home Office said information from the £760,000 operation would help target individuals and trouble spots. | |
Seventy per cent of the drink seized was beer, 15% cider, 5% alcopops, 5% wine and 5% spirits. | |
Acting on public tip-offs and local intelligence, police officers and Police Community Support Officers approached groups of youngsters in underage drinking hotspots and confiscated alcohol wherever they found it. | |
The campaign was targeted to coincide with the school half-term holiday in each area. | |
When police asked the under-age drinkers where the alcohol came from, 70% refused to say, while of the remaining 30% half said they got the drink from a shop. Under-age drinkers need to understand that there will be consequences for their actions Shane Brennan, Association of Convenience Stores | |
Mr Coaker said that confiscating the alcohol was "just one part of our strategy" to address the damage and disruption caused by underage drinking. | |
"I know the public will welcome police action to disperse groups of threatening youths and choke their supply of alcohol. This campaign will not be the last," he said. | |
"I also want to remind parents of their responsibility and where poor parenting is identified as an issue I want to see greater use of parenting contracts to tackle persistent underage drinking. | |
"Police officers tell me that these campaigns yield valuable intelligence about where children get their alcohol. | |
"With this in mind, I want to send a strong signal once again to those persistent few irresponsible retailers that deliberately sell to under-18s. They will be caught and they will be punished." | |
'Loophole' | 'Loophole' |
Frank Soodean, a spokesman for Alcohol Concern which campaigns against alcohol misuse, said the government needed to look at a loophole in the law surrounding the sale of alcohol. | |
Kids are smart. They seem to have cottoned on to this loophole Frank Soodean, Alcohol Concern | |
"As stores have tightened their sales policies, teenagers appear to be more reliant on a mix of rogue retailers and, increasingly, adults who've either been cajoled or bullied into buying it on their behalf. | "As stores have tightened their sales policies, teenagers appear to be more reliant on a mix of rogue retailers and, increasingly, adults who've either been cajoled or bullied into buying it on their behalf. |
"It hardly seems appropriate for an older cousin to get away with a £50 fine when stores face penalties of up to £5,000 for selling drinks to the under-age. | "It hardly seems appropriate for an older cousin to get away with a £50 fine when stores face penalties of up to £5,000 for selling drinks to the under-age. |
"Kids are smart. They seem to have cottoned on to this loophole." | "Kids are smart. They seem to have cottoned on to this loophole." |
Mr Soodean added that the figures should also put an end to the stereotype that all teenagers just drank alcopops. | Mr Soodean added that the figures should also put an end to the stereotype that all teenagers just drank alcopops. |
"So much of the industry's self-regulation is based on the false premise that only drinks that have cutesy cartoon characters on their labels should be censured," he said. | "So much of the industry's self-regulation is based on the false premise that only drinks that have cutesy cartoon characters on their labels should be censured," he said. |
"The fact is teens in many cases are drinking exactly the same labels you'd expect a twenty-something to buy." | "The fact is teens in many cases are drinking exactly the same labels you'd expect a twenty-something to buy." |
Shane Brennan, of the Association of Convenience Stores, said young people needed to be made to fear the consequences of their actions. | |
"Retailers need to take their responsibilities seriously, but young people need to understand that under-age drinking is wrong. | |
"The act of on-street confiscations is the right thing to do, and it's vital that police target youths with penalties and by taking them back to their parents for a warning. | |
"Under-age drinkers need to understand that there will be consequences for their actions." | |
'Targeting retailers' | 'Targeting retailers' |
Chris Allison, deputy assistant commissioner for the Metropolitan Police, speaks for the Association of Chief Police Officers on licensing issues. | Chris Allison, deputy assistant commissioner for the Metropolitan Police, speaks for the Association of Chief Police Officers on licensing issues. |
He said officers up and down the country were making use of the powers they had to confiscate alcohol from those under the age of 18. | He said officers up and down the country were making use of the powers they had to confiscate alcohol from those under the age of 18. |
"The results announced today give a clear indication of the issue that we are dealing with. | "The results announced today give a clear indication of the issue that we are dealing with. |
"We will continue to use these powers, as well as targeting those retailers who still sell to those who are under-age." | "We will continue to use these powers, as well as targeting those retailers who still sell to those who are under-age." |
A Home Office spokesman said information gathered by police during the operation would help them target individuals and trouble spots in future. | A Home Office spokesman said information gathered by police during the operation would help them target individuals and trouble spots in future. |