THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN TREATED IN HOSPITAL FOR ALCOHOL-RELATED PROBLEMS - GIDLEY

2.55.03pm BST (GMT +0100) Mon 23rd Jul 2007

The number of children aged 15 and under being admitted to A&E departments with alcohol-related problems rose to nearly 4,000 in 2005-06.

The statistics, which came from the answer to a Parliamentary Question by Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson, Sandra Gidley MP, show that 3,939 children were admitted to A&E with alcohol-related problems, the highest total for at least five years.

Separate figures also uncovered by the Liberal Democrats show a growing gap between teenage girls and boys admitted to A&E for the toxic effects of alcohol. In 2005/06 the figure was 62% girls and 38% boys. In 2001/02 the figures for girls and boys were split almost evenly at 51% to 49%.

Commenting, Sandra Gidley said:

"This is a frightening sign of how out of control the binge drinking culture in this country has become. Our A&E departments are having to cope with drunkenness on a massive scale.

"It is our young people - and girls in particular - who are most at risk.

"Problem drinking starts at an early age, yet the Government is failing to focus its resources on the young and is not launching any new measures against binge drinking until sometime next year.

"Our young people simply cannot wait this long. As well as causing chaos in A&Es on Friday nights and anti-social behaviour, irresponsible drinking results in serious long-term health problems.

"A fresh look at tackling the growing problem of excessive drinking is long overdue. A good start would be cracking down on those shops that sell alcohol to underage children. We also need to consider putting a halt to supermarkets selling drinks at rock bottom prices - with no thought as to the knock on effects."

ENDS

Notes to Editors

1. The figures for alcohol-related admissions can be found at: <http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm070717/text/70717w0011.htm#070717102001006>

2. The figures for admissions for boys and girls treated for the toxic effects of alcohol came from the following question: <http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm070719/text/70719w0028.htm#0707207004071>

Full statistics below:

2001/2

Male: 374, Female: 363, Total: 737

2002/3

Male: 260, Female: 322, Total: 582

2003/4

Male: 220, Female: 357, Total: 577

2004/5

Male: 243, Female: 363, Total: 606

2005/6

Male: 192, Female: 312, Total: 504

3. Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many alcohol awareness programmes have been set up in (a) 2007 and (b) the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: In October 2006 the Government launched the Know Your Limits campaign, the first in the past five years, aimed at binge drinkers.

'Safe. Sensible. Social. The next steps in the National Alcohol Strategy' committed the Government to campaign to end the tolerance of drunkenness and raise awareness of the sensible drinking message, specifically how to use units to calculate alcoholic intake. Although neither campaign is due to be launched until 2008, work is currently underway to facilitate this.

<http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2007-07-19a.150413.h>