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Proxy sales to the under aged - some interesting statistics?

Recent figures issued by the Government in response to a question in Parliament seem to support what most in the trade already know………that too much the emphasis in relation to preventing under age sales and the consumption of alcohol by under age persons is aimed at operators. Our overwhelming experience is that prosecutions in relation to under age sales relate to “sting” operations against operators rather than proven sales to under aged individuals in the ordinary course of business.

The trade has for some time been saying one of the best way to prevent sales (as well as having good effective due diligence systems) is to prosecute the purchasers and thus send a message to those trying to break the law and illegally obtain alcohol.

The published  figures (which cover 2004 – 2008) show only 28 convictions throughout 2008 for those trying to obtain alcohol for under 18s (varying between 18-30 over the previous four years) and 574 fixed penalty notices (down from 619 for 2007), a minute proportion when you consider the number of licensed premises in the country!

Tim Shield