Police hail scheme to halt alcohol sales to under-18s
project targets licensed premises
Published:
A PROJECT designed to tackle the sale of alcohol to under-18s has produced excellent results, according to Grampian Police.
The national scheme, which was launched six months ago, deploys 16-year-olds trying to buy alcohol from licensed premises.
Any shop or pub that falls foul of the initiative faces prosecution and the possibility of its licence being revoked.
Since the beginning of the project, only nine licensees have been found to have supplied alcohol to a 16-year-old volunteer out of 37 checks carried out in the Grampian force area.
Chief Inspector Doug Mackenzie, who co-ordinates the project in his area, is delighted that it seems to be working.
Chief Inspector Mackenzie said: “Alcohol-fuelled youth disorder is unacceptable. If we are to make our communities safer, then we as a society have to work together to try and change this culture.
“We are happy to work with the licensed trade, local licensing boards and others to try and reduce the opportunities for young people to source alcohol.
“That said, parents have a role to play in ensuring they do their bit to prevent their children sourcing alcohol from the home.”
Councillor Martin Greig, convener of Grampian Joint Police Board and chairman of Aberdeen Community Safety Partnership, welcomed the results and said the scheme was a strong deterrent.
“Just by having this power is a good way of giving a warning to licensees that they could be caught through a carefully targeted police operation,” he said.
Legalised
“Test purchasing is a welcome method to encourage sellers of alcohol to be responsible and careful in selling to customers.”
It had previously been illegal for police forces to use under-18s in their efforts to uncover licensees selling alcohol to those who are under-age.
The tactic was legalised in the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005.
This permits chief constables to authorise an under-age child to buy or attempt to buy alcohol for detection purposes.
