MP slams demise of traditional pub

The demise of the traditional pub has led to the growth in binge-drinking among teenagers, according to a Dudley MP.

Ross Cranston, MP for Dudley North, who is a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on alcohol misuse, said the move away from community locals towards trendy high street bars was at the root of the modern binge-drinking culture.

He also argued that if youngsters drank in a community pub where there are often organsied social activities, they would be drinking less.

His comments followed the release of new research by Alcohol Concern called 100 per cent Proof. The research revealed that unsafe drinking among 16 to 24-year-old women had more than doubled, with young men's drinking up by over a third.

Mr Cranston said there was evidence that factors such as loud music and happy hours in modern bars were also encouraging binge-drinking and he asked for more research to be carried out into the issue. He said: "The recent chief medical officer's report highlights an increasing trend in teenage drinking.

"Young people can be at risk from an alcohol overdose or an alcohol-related injury, or the development of inappropriate drinking behaviour."

His views have been supported by the Irish minister for justice who has called for a return to community pubs in order to crack down on alcohol-related problems. Speaking at an international conference in Dublin this month, Michael McDowell said that large modern pubs and bars not only created noise and nuisance but also made controlling underage drinking more difficult.