Alcohol: Children’s Health Debate
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Lord Robathan
Main Page: Lord Robathan (Conservative - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Robathan's debates with the Department of Health and Social Care
(7 years, 1 month ago)
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Lord O’Shaughnessy
The noble Lord is not quite right on that. Public Health England’s evidence review identified a negative impact, and that constitutes research. It looked at the evidence, which is that advertising and marketing to young people has a negative impact on their drinking behaviours. There are stringent rules, particularly around advertising, which is policed by the Advertising Standards Authority, to make sure that that does not happen.
Lord Robathan (Con)
My Lords, while we all wish to see responsible supermarket advertising, is it not the case that law already exists to prevent the sale of alcohol to children? Surely this law should be enforced and parents held responsible if their children are drinking illegally.
Lord O’Shaughnessy
As my noble friend points out, there are very strict rules around the sale of alcohol to children under the age of 18, and tough punishments exist for anyone who is doing so.