Executive Summary for Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children
“...alcohol marketing increases the likelihood that adolescents will start to use alcohol, and to drink more if
they are already using alcohol.”
Scientific Opinion of the Science Group of the European Alcohol and Health Forum, 2009
Alcohol Action Ireland is the national charity for alcohol-related issues. We work to raise awareness of alcoholrelated harm and the solutions needed to tackle that harm. Of particular concern, is the impact of alcoholrelated harm to children and young people both through their own consumption of alcohol and the alcohol
consumption of others. Alcohol Action Ireland also runs www.drinkhelp.ie – the largest online independent
dedicated site for alcohol services in Ireland.
We will be discussing with the Joint Committee on Health and Children:
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Minimum Pricing
Alcohol marketing in relation to young people
Pricing along with accessibility/availability and marketing has been singled out by the World Health
Organisation as a key way of reducing alcohol-related harms. Leaving aside the human costs, one person dies
every seven hours from an alcohol-related illness, alcohol-related harms currently cost this country €3.7 billion
a year - €1.2 billion in health and €1.2 billion in crime – the equivalent of what we are facing in austerity cuts
this year.
In relation to minimum pricing we would ask the committee to consider Alcohol Action Ireland’s Pre Budget
Submission 2012: Alcohol in Ireland: Finding the right measure as our submission. It outlines the case for
tackling alcohol pricing and, in particular, the need for a minimum floor price on alcohol and is available on
www.alcoholireland.ie.
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55% of people surveyed by Behaviour and Attitudes for Alcohol Action Ireland said they were in
favour of minimum pricing (2011)
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Almost half of respondents said they would buy less alcohol if the price were increased by just 10%
(Behaviour and Attitudes for Alcohol Action Ireland 2010)
Alcohol Action Ireland is not alone in its concern over the current low cost alcohol available in Ireland which
allows a woman to reach her low risk weekly drinking limit for under €7 and a man for under €10 – the
equivalent of one hour worked on minimum wage. The following leading charities and organisations have also
voiced their support for minimum pricing:
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Barnardos
Faculty of Public Health Medicine, Royal College of Physicians of Ireland
Focus Ireland
Rape Crisis Network Ireland
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St Vincent De Paul
The Ballymun Local Drugs Taskforce
The Irish Cancer Society
The Irish Heart Foundation
The Irish Medical Organisation
The ISPCC
The National Youth Council of Ireland
The No Name Club
The North West Alcohol Forum
Some of these organisations work to promote health in the general population and include medical
representative organisations. Others work to protect and promote the welfare of children and young people,
as well as families in crisis, victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, communities tackling poverty and
anti-social behaviour. Each and all of them for their own reasons are supporting minimum pricing for alcohol.
Marketing and Young People
Marketing of any product is done using four separate elements: product, price, place and promotion. The
purpose of marketing at its most fundamental level is to get a consumer to buy a product, to keep on buying
the product and to make profits for shareholders.
Pricing and advertising/ sponsorship are all aspects of what is called the marketing mix and commercial
organisations design marketing strategies so that each element of that mix works in an integrated way. For
example, an ad for an alcohol product advertising it at a certain price can direct someone to a Facebook page
where they are informed of events linked to the product such as promotional nights, the consumer is then
invited to “like” and share with their friends.
In a survey commissioned by Alcohol Action Ireland last year and carried out by market research firm
Behaviour and Attitudes, young people revealed the following:
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five of out of ten of their favourite ads were for alcohol
83% of 16 to 17-year-olds, pre-legal drinking age, had a social networking page such as Facebook –
30% of them had received an alcohol ad or pop-up; that figure rose to 43% for the 18 to 20-year-old
age group
Two out of five 16 to 21-year-olds owned an alcohol-branded item of clothing but when asked only 1
per cent said that this clothing was a source of advertising implying that while young people were
aware of alcohol advertising they were also being marketed in ways that they were not aware of
There is a wealth of evidence to support the contention that alcohol marketing influences young people’s
decision to drink and if they are drinking their drinking patterns or as the Science Group of the European
Alcohol and Health Forum found:
“...alcohol marketing increases the likelihood that adolescents will start to use alcohol, and to drink more if
they are already using alcohol.”
Even if it is accepted that the alcohol industry is not deliberately targeting children – defined in Ireland as
anyone under the age of 18 – they are targeting young people of legal drinking age that is 18 and over. It is
impossible for 16 and 17-year-olds not to be exposed to the same marketing.
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What makes regulation even more difficult is that alcohol marketing is constantly evolving. Marketing spend is
becoming increasingly directed at the least regulated media areas. For example the recent multi-million Euro
deal between Facebook and Diageo as well as the equally massive deal between Heineken and Google.
Marketing can shape youth culture by creating and sustaining expectations and norms about how to achieve
social, sporting or sexual success, how to celebrate, how to relax and how to belong. Alcohol marketing has
colonized many of the worlds in which young people spend their time – the worlds of music, sport and the
online world. And it often seeks out and finds young people in these worlds, uninvited in the case of ads or
pop-ups.
Children and young people need and deserve protection from alcohol marketing including industry
sponsorship of sports, music and cultural events a practice which promotes positive and risk free images of
alcohol and alcohol consumption, as well as cultivating positive attitudes and views of drinking.
Alcohol is now sold at ‘pocket money’ prices, being more affordable and more available than ever before.
Young people are particularly price sensitive when it comes to alcohol – increasing the price of the cheapest
drink will have a greater effect on reducing alcohol consumption among young people than on the wider
population.
So why should we be concerned about alcohol marketing?
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It matters because alcohol marketing influences young people to drink earlier and to drink more
(Science Group, European Alcohol and Health Forum)
It matters because young people’s drinking patterns have a direct effect on their health, development
and welfare.
It matters because young people are more vulnerable when it comes to the effects of alcohol use –
alcohol use by children and young people carries an increased risk of harm compared to alcohol use
by adults.
Children and young people experience a disproportionate negative impact when it comes to alcohol. Alcohol
affects the developing, adolescent brain in a different way to the adult brain. Early and repeated alcohol use
can lead to significant brain chemistry changes – changes that affect memory, reasoning, self-regulation and
judgement.
People who begin drinking before the age of 15 are four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence than
those who start at age 20 or older. Those who drink heavily in their mid-teens are also more likely to
experience alcohol-related harms as young adults.
The primary asset of a nation is its health: higher levels of health associated with greater overall well-being and
productivity.
The evidence clearly shows that alcohol marketing influences their drinking behaviours. Children and young
people are not currently protected from alcohol marketing, self-regulation does not offer the protection
needed. As a vulnerable group, children and young people need protection. It is neither appropriate nor
desirable to delegate this responsibility to commercial interests, such as the alcohol and advertising industries.
This duty rests with Government, it rests with the elected, accountable guardians of public interest. Selfregulation can never be a substitute for good legislation.
Alcohol Action Ireland propose the following recommendations for action to be considered by the Committee
1.
Introduce a minimum floor price for alcohol. Price is an essential element of the marketing mix. There
is indisputable evidence that the price of alcohol matters and pricing policy remains one of the most
effective ways of reducing alcohol-related harms and costs.
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2.
Develop an action plan to begin phasing out sponsorship by the alcohol industry, one which will
include a deadline for a complete ban within five years. Alcohol Action Ireland would like to see such
a ban put on a legislative basis.
3.
Separate out alcohol from other products in mixed trading premises. This can be achieved by the
commencement of section 9 of the Intoxicating Liquor Act and its amendment to include wine
4.
Effective regulation and legislation need to effectively address both content and volume of
advertising, with a particular focus on reducing volume. It is simpler to monitor and enforce
regulations that specify what can be included in marketing communications as opposed to what can’t
be included. For example, in France the only content permitted is that relating to product
information.
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Regulation needs to be independent of the alcohol and advertising industries and it needs be
embedded in law underpinned by a well functioning regulatory system, with substantial deterrents.
Young people should be formally involved in any process which evaluates content —they are the best
people to judge what a particular communication is saying are those in the target audience
6.
Digital media —including social networking sites, email, viral marketing, and texts— is a fast growing
medium for alcohol advertising. The introduction of mandatory age authentication controls, and
controls on the volume, content and placement in digital media will go some way to protecting
children and young people. However, serious consideration needs to given to banning the use of
marketing tools in media that are difficult to monitor, and that reach large numbers of young people
7.
Regulations and legislation need address all elements of the marketing mix. When one area is
regulated, this tends to lead to an expansion of investment and activity in another area. It was for this
reason the EU instituted a comprehensive ban on all aspects of tobacco marketing. Similar to tobacco,
such a move can be considered proportionate on the basis that it protects the health of its citizens.
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