Alcohol sales to under 18’s

Press release - 2 August 2007

Shropshire County Council’s Trading Standards Service, supported by West Mercia Police, recently carried out a test purchasing exercise to assess the extent that retailers in Shrewsbury were willing to sell alcohol to children under 18.

Test purchases were attempted using a 15 year old female volunteer. A total of 6 premises were visited with 2 sales making the overall sales level of this latest exercise 33%. Whilst the number of test purchases was relatively small on this occasion, the percentage of sales is significantly higher than the average results for the exercises conducted in Shrewsbury last year when sales were found to be at a little under 19%.

The Trading Standards Service places a high priority on preventing illegal sales of alcohol to children and the service views the latest results as disappointing. However, the overall trend is definitely towards retailers reducing the number of sales made. When these types of exercises were first undertaken, illegal sales were running at over 50%.

Richard Morris, senior enforcement officer from the Trading Standards Service, who was involved in the exercise, said: “All the retailers who refused to sell to the volunteers sought proof of age. This is extremely positive and is the only way to be sure of a child’s age and to avoid making illegal sales of alcohol.

“The Trading Standards Service strongly urges all retailers to adopt a “21 policy” to ensure they do not sell to young people who are under 18 but appear older than their actual age. The “21 policy” requires anyone who appears under 21 to prove they have attained the appropriate legal age.”

Frances Darling, enforcement team manager, added: “Despite the 2 sales that took place, this operation has again seen effective partnership working between Shropshire County Council’s Trading Standards Service and West Mercia Police. Utilising powers held by the police have meant that illegal sales by sellers were dealt with quickly and efficiently by means of fixed penalty notices where appropriate and investigations are now ongoing in relation to the businesses involved. It is our intention to continue to work with West Mercia Police in the future to crack down on illegal sales of alcohol to children and to assist in the reduction of alcohol induced anti-social behaviour.”

John Hurst-Knight, portfolio holder for waste and economy, added: “With schools now closed for the summer holiday period, there is greater opportunity for youngsters to obtain and consume alcohol. This may lead to an increase in anti-social behaviour. Retailers can help prevent this by being particularly vigilant during the next few months by asking for proof of age from anyone who appears to be under 21 in an effort to ensure they do not sell alcohol to under 18s.”

Ends

For media contact, call Laura Owen, Communications Officer, Economy & Environment on (01743) 253318.