Lower legal age to help stop this binge-drinking menace

Hands up if you were 18 when you bought your first alcoholic drink. I bet there can't be many of you who don't have fond memories of sitting - illegally - in the back room of some pub, feeling very grown-up and a little bit naughty, with half a lager and no cash left for a second one, then getting the last bus home. Happy days.

We didn't turn out too badly considering the depraved youth we had. We're not the brain-addled misfits living off the state that some people would like to believe under-age drinkers grow up to be. By restricting something we create an increased and possibly irrational desire for it, so the latest proposal to lower the legal age for buying and consuming alcohol has my full support.

In fact I would go further and scrap the laws altogether in order to allow all youngsters under the age of 18 to be exposed to alcohol, but in a controlled and relaxed environment and under the supervision of parents.

I strongly believe that this issue could and should be managed at ground level by parents and licensees, and not by complicated and inconsistent legislation from on high. I accept that misuse of alcohol will always happen and be the cause of violence and damage to property and to health, but better to deal with the problems of the individuals who don't, or can't, use alcohol wisely than to impose an arbitrary age limit on the population at large.

By having a more relaxed attitude to the demon drink we can start to stifle the binge drinking that is driving older and possibly wealthier potential pub customers from town centres and which is regarded with horror in many other countries.

I propose taking as our model the Mediterranean countries where kids grow up in a culture where wine (or ouzo) is an essential part of meal times. The drink is consumed during long dinners where extended family and friends get together, and where the children are welcomed rather than tolerated and where they get their first sips of alcohol.

Alcohol goes along with food, conversation and laughter - quite unlike the perception of a good night out for most UK youngsters. A Continental lifestyle was one of the benefits that heralded the introduction of 24-hour licensing.

Let's go one step further and aim for Continental attitudes towards alcohol for the benefit of customers, licensees and the whole industry.