Government committed to working with industry'

I think everyone in the drinks industry agrees on one thing: alcohol-related crime and those who sell alcohol illegally must be tackled.

How we ­ the industry, Government, police and others ­ do this together is, of course, a matter for debate.

I, and my colleague, Licensing Minister Richard Caborn, want it to be an honest and open debate between everyone involved.

That's why I was concerned to read the Morning Advertiser's front page report [9 December 2004]on the Government's code of practice and how the "furious" industry were "united against it".

The main concern of the MA's article ­ that we are preparing a new accreditation scheme for the trade ­ has been blown out of all proportion.

It is right that we want to tackle alcohol abuse and drink-related crime and those in the trade who fuel it by selling drink illegally. Not only does alcohol misuse cost the country around £20bn a year, it also raises the fear of crime ­ and that's not mentioning the harm it can do to the reputation of the industry.

I believe the industry wants to tackle these issues too and I'm encouraged by the constructive approach taken so far through activities such as the summer alcohol enforcement campaign ­ I do not want that relationship undermined by misinformation.

The Government is committed to working with the industry, not against it.

So, let me be clear: no decisions have been made on the code of practice and any associated accreditation scheme. Discussions are at an early stage and the main trade associations are heavily involved. We do not want to reinvent the wheel; if there is an accreditation scheme which is working currently and meets our needs then we will not create a new one for the sake of it.

Such a scheme would need to underpin the code of practice and act as a real incentive for the industry to stick to it. We certainly have no intention of setting up a new regulatory body ­ there will be no Ofbooze as the article suggests. And we are not going to usurp the valuable role of the Portman Group, as their work will be a vital part of the code of practice.

I am working closely on all of these issues with other ministers across Government. We all recognise this issue is of massive interest to you and our guarantee is that no decisions will be made without first fully consulting the industry.

But a code of practice is needed because thestatus quo is not tolerable ­ 44% of violent crime is linked to alcohol and people are afraid to use their town and city centres for fear of becoming a victim of crime.

The summer crackdown on alcohol-related crime saw visits to more than 30,000 premises, 4,000 fixed penalty notices (44% for being drunk and disorderly) were issued and 5,658 people were arrested. Targeted operations found a high proportion of on and off-licences selling to under 18s.

The success of the campaign is a tribute to the police and their partners who carried it out and is the reason why we repeated the scheme at Christmas. We are clear that this problem does not solely lie with industry and that we need to crack down on mindless drunken individuals too.

But we will only make a lasting difference if the drinks industry co-operates. There are already encouraging signs with bars and breweries scrapping irresponsible drinks promotions, new health warnings on bottles and free soft drinks for drivers.

This must continue, along with the close working we enjoy ­ it makes sense for the industry and it will lead to safer and healthier communities across the country.

Hazel Blears

Home Office Minister

Help shed light on chairman's silver salver'

I have recently acquired a silver salver that was presented to a William Lloyd in April 1885 on his retirement as chairman of the Incorporated Society of Licensed Victuallers. The inscription bears the name of many members at that time and appears to be of considerable value.

I wonder whether anyone can assist me in tracing its origins and also whether it has any interest to the current company.

David Eager

via e-mail