UK beer brewer shares Khama's sentiments

MONKAGEDI GAOTLHOBOGWE
Staff Writer | Monday July 5, 2010 00:00

While the local beer brewer and the alcohol industry continue to cry foul over legislation to curb binge drinking, one of the largest brewers in the UK on 1 July called for exactly the same laws that Khama introduced in 2008 to curb the problem.

The legislation, which includes a 30 percent levy and reduction of drinking hours, has resulted in the only brewer, Kgalagadi Breweries, complaining that the measures have hurt their business.

More restrictive measures suggested by the 'Morals Committee', led by Kgosi Gaborone and the churches, also seek to hike the drinking age from 18 to 21.

Khama will be happy to find that he has found a friend in the beer industry in his war against binge drinking.Greene PLc, one of the oldest beer brewers in the UK, appeared on BBC's, SkyBSky, and other media outlets on July 1, calling for legislation that would make alcohol inaccessible to teenagers, as well as control bulk buying of drinks, among others. 

Exactly on July 1, when Ian Khama enjoyed the holiday dedicated to his father, Seretse Khama, the CEO for the 200 years old brewer, Rooney Anand, not only condemned binge drinking, which has become common in the UK, he also called on the new UK government of David Cameron and Nick Clegg to hike the price of alcohol.

When Khama took the decision to impose a 30 percent levy on alcoholic beverages in 2008, his stance was met with hostility from politicians and the alcohol industry, as well as the media. The decision by Khama is still being condemned by the local alcohol industry.

Two years down the line a brewer in Britain wants the UK government to consider hiking alcohol prices, limiting operating hours of bars.

According to the CEO of the brewer, which also owns pubs and nightclubs in the UK, price hike on alcoholic beverages would discourage bulk-buying of drinks.

The CEO also said he would like to see greater restriction across the industry on the purchase of alcohol to ensure responsible retailing, adding that this could include more restrictions on the times of day one could buy alcohol, as well as more stringent legislation banning the sale of alcohol to drunk people.

The brewer is concerned that in real terms alcohol has become cheaper and its consumption patterns have become markedly different from those in the past, with more people drinking at home and in public places and a wider range of alcohol readily available at low prices.

He is concerned that liver disease in the UK, which is related to alcohol abuse, has increased in incidence in the past 20 years, adding that irresponsible drinking has contributed to rising levels of anti-social behavior.

The CEO says he fears that if no attempt is made to solve this growing culture of irresponsible drinking then the alcohol industry is likely to face punitive sanctions, in the process hurting the profits of alcohol companies and affecting hundreds of thousands of people who work in the alcohol industry.