Alcohol misuse: tackling the UK epidemic - London

BMA Board of Science
The number of officially recorded drunkenness offenders has been declining since 1981
throughout the UK (see Figure 13). These figures should be taken with caution as they most likely
reflect changes in policy and police practice rather than changes in the actual incidence of
drunkenness. 4
The 2004 PMSU alcohol-harm reduction strategy noted that ‘Enforcement of
legislation on drunk and disorderly behaviour has dropped sharply over the last 10 years. This
reflects not only falling priority but also, crucially, the sheer practicalities of policing large numbers
of drunk people’. 8
In England and Wales, the recent downward trend coincides with the
introduction of Penalty Notices for Disorder (PND) in 2003/04. In 2004 there were approximately
3,000 penalty notices issued for drunkenness or consuming alcohol in a designated public place
and 26,600 penalty notices issued for drunk and disorderly behaviour. 40
Figure 13 – drunkenness offenders in the UK, 1964-2005
Number of offenders
140000
120000
100000
80000
60000
40000
20000
0
1965
1967
1969
1971
Source: Statistical handbook 2007 (British Beer and Pub Association, 2007)
1973
1975
1977
1979
1981
1983
While statistics on alcohol-defined offences such as drunkenness and driving with excess alcohol
are readily available, data on other offences where alcohol is a contributory factor are not collected
per se due to the complexity in establishing causality. As a result, the involvement of alcohol in
offences such as assault is not routinely investigated or recorded. This is compounded by the
under-reporting in police statistics of violent crimes which is known to occur. 79
Data on the levels
of antisocial behaviour are also limited as this information is also not routinely collected. There is a
clear need to improve the collection of data on alcohol-related crime and disorder through routine
coding in police investigations and incident reports.
Alcohol misuse: tackling the UK epidemic 39
1985
Year
1987
Total number of offenders
Rate per 10,000 (all ages)
Rate per 10,000 (aged 15 and over)
1989
1991
1993
1995
1997
1999
2001
2003
2005
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Rate per 10,000 population