Saturday night fever in Cardiff
Loud sirens, wailing ambulances, drunken brawls. It’s Saturday night. Cardiff on a Saturday night sounds less like fun and more like a city under attack. It is under attack, the unlikely weapon is alcohol.
Alcohol abuse in the UK has grown to such a tremendous degree, that in October Health minister Patricia Hewitt, demanded an increase in taxes on alcohol.
In Cardiff the number of teenagers bingeing is rising rapidly. A study conducted by the University of Wales College of medicine found: the age at which young people begin drinking is decreasing, whilst the amount consumed is increasing.
Whether the proposed tax increase is the solution is debatable.
Mr Kosta Adamakis, head doorman at the Glo bar in Cardiff is used to dealing with drunken and disorderly behaviour - a by product of bingeing. He said “The aim of going out on a weekend is to get drunk.” As he was speaking a group of young girls walked up to the door. He asked them for their identification, satisfied, he continued “It’s difficult nowadays to tell the age of the customers. If we let someone who is underage in, very often they get drunk, they fall down the stairs, and cause damage to themselves and others.” He also added “fortunately not many teenagers go to bars: they prefer drinking out on the street or in parks.”
Pc Rhydian Boast, of the alcohol misuse team in Cardiff, shared the same view, “Teenagers acquire alcohol mostly from supermarkets. A lot of them don’t go to clubs and bars.” He went on to say “A huge problem we now face is, groups drinking in the park opposite the city hall.”
Accidents caused by alcohol misuse are another growing concern. The police department has a special procedure for weekends, called Cardiff after dark. It demands that extra ambulances and policemen from other departments be on standby. A lot of the main roads also are closed off during weekends.
“We’ve had to put these precautions in place because of the casualties” clarified Pc Boast “we’ve had a lot of alcohol related accidents, mostly in the dodgy streets of the city centre not so much in clubs.”
As for a tax increase on alcohol, Pc Boast reckons “it might deter a few, but it will not solve the problem of the growing numbers of teenagers binge drinking.”
Although high prices might dampen the spirit of some, this is a fever that will not be cured by a bitter pill. Health Evidence Bulletins Wales states, community involvement as well as attempts to limit the availability of alcohol and regulate the marketing and sales practices of local merchants have demonstrated effectiveness.
The Cardiff Council spends £700 pounds every week on clean-up operations, in the park opposite the city hall. The community is unknowingly hosting the virus.
It would be far more effective to prevent the spreading fever through various community based programmes, than trying to cure it through taxes. (500 words)
posted by Bipasha @ 3:09 PM
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