Teenage binge drinkers targeted under draft French law

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-29635131

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The French government has drafted a law aimed at tackling the growing problem of youth binge drinking.

Anyone found guilty of inciting minors to drink excessive levels of alcohol could be sentenced to a year in prison or fined €15,000 (£12,000, $18,000).

France's health minister also said she wanted to take aim at T-shirts and mobile phone covers which glorify drunkenness.

Increasing numbers of young French admit to binge drinking.

The issue is often perceived as an unwelcome import from the UK, says the BBC's Hugh Schofield in Paris.

Last year the culture ministry even approved a new phrase "beuverie express" to describe the binge-drinking phenomenon.

More than half of French 17-year-olds now say they have drunk to excess at least once over the previous month.

Health Minister Marisol Touraine vowed that the law would "put a stop to drunkenness".