Calls for a region-wide strategy on alcohol abuse

Ralph Blunsom reports on Manchester's plan to beat the booze.

Granada Reports presenters Tony and Elaine were joined in the studio by Tony Noonan, a recovering alcoholic who runs a charity which aims to change the thinking of people with drinking problems. We asked him at what point drinking can become a problem.

To find out more about Tony's charity Aftercare Sober Solutions click here

Councils, health services and the police have today officially teamed up to tackle alcohol abuse in Greater Manchester.

This is the first time ever in the UK such a large number of public bodies have united to launch a joint effort to deal with the problems caused by alcohol harm.

It is estimated excess alcohol consumption in Greater Manchester costs £1.2bn every year. That’s £436 for every person living in the region.

The strategy, which was officially endorsed today by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), focuses on prevention of alcohol abuse and bringing in measures to tackle the problems it causes.

The strategy sets out a number of recommendations which include:

· Ensuring licensing powers are more effective and used consistently

· Putting the right services in place to protect victims of domestic abuse

· Improving awareness of the impact of drinking to the whole population

Mike Connolly, Leader of Bury Council and GMCA’s lead for the strategy said: “The impact of alcohol abuse is huge and it’s everybody’s business. It impacts on the health and wellbeing of our residents, the safety of our communities and the future success of our town centres and their night-time economies. It’s essential that all public bodies from across our region work together to tackle this scourge on our society.''

A plan to tackle alcohol abuse across the whole of Greater Manchester has been given the go ahead today. The bringing together of so many agencies is being dubbed a UK first. It follows a report claiming the problem costs every person in the area £436 each year, a total of 1.2 Billion.

It will try and ensure that licensing powers are more effective, victims of domestic abuse are protected and have a focus on reducing levels of drinking.

Greater Manchester Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner Jim Battle and the Leader of Bury Council, Councillor Mike Connolly spoke to Granada Reports about the plans:

A new report claims the problem is costing every person in Greater Manchester £436 each year - that's a total of £1.2 billion for the Manchester region.

If the plan's adopted, it would mean that the police, local councils and health services working together to tackle the causes and the affects of drinking.

The report to be debated by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority sets out a number of recommendations to be included in a united alcohol strategy including:

· Ensuring licensing powers are more effective and used consistently

· Putting the right services in place to protect victims of domestic abuse

· Supporting public health activity to reduce the levels of drinking across the whole local population with a focus on education.

If it is approved, it would be the first time in the UK such a large number of public bodies have united to launch an alcohol strategy.

Mike Connolly, Leader of Bury Council, said:

“The impact of alcohol abuse is everybody’s business. It impacts on the health and wellbeing of our residents, the safety of our communities and the future success of our town centres and their night-time economies. It’s essential we team up, roll up our sleeves to tackle this scourge on society together.

“It’s obviously not a problem just for Greater Manchester but the facts speak for themselves. Thirty eight per cent of violent incidents that result in an injury involve alcohol and one in three domestic incidents is alcohol related. Typically, people battling with alcohol die earlier, go to hospital more often and struggle to hold down regular work.

“Binge drinking also has a massive effect on our town centres, putting pressure on businesses and impacting on the safety of our residents. We must join forces to tackle this now.”

Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan of Greater Manchester Police said: “Alcohol-related crime and disorder is a consistent challenge for the police and our partners in Greater Manchester. Our selection as one of the 20 Local Alcohol Action Areas helps us to highlight the challenges and difficulties we face, which enables us to design new solutions to an old but persistent problem.

“Greater Manchester has many areas which have a thriving nightlife but unfortunately long opening hours of pubs and clubs and the easy availability and cheap cost of buying alcohol from supermarkets has meant more people are getting excessively drunk and causing a nuisance and harm to themselves and others. This results in an increase in demands on the police, health services and local councils who are faced with managing both the risks to individuals and the damage that is caused to lives and our streets.

“I am confident that once a strategy is agreed it will ensure that measures are put in place which will have a long lasting impact on alcohol abuse in Greater Manchester and the problems caused by it.”

Jim Battle, deputy police commissioner for Greater Manchester added: “Pulling together and implementing a comprehensive alcohol strategy across Greater Manchester presents a unique opportunity to direct our collective efforts to address the harm caused by alcohol, making best use of good practice that is taking place locally and the resources we have available. The strategy has been designed to do just that and will ensure that communities and partners work together in a coordinated, complementary way.”