Child Drinking Problem Exposed

Eight-Year-Olds Found Drinking Before School

Irish children as young as eight are drinking regularly, and some drink before going into school in the morning, according to a specially commissioned report commissioned presented to the Dail last week.

The report also found that underage drinking was at its highest ever level in Ireland and that much more needed to be done by government to tackle the problem.

Among the report's findings was that almost 80% of young people under the age of 14 had tried alcohol more than once and without their parent's knowledge.

The report said that the level of underage drinking in Ireland causes serious concerns for the prevalence of alcoholism in later years.

In response to the report a committee of TD's said that alcohol should be treated as an addictive drug in the same way as cocaine or heroin.

They recommended that alcohol should be included in the National Drugs Strategy.

Pat Cahill, former President of ASTI, and a former head teacher at a secondary school told the Dail that in his experience primary school children were drinking beer before going to class.

"It wouldn't be the norm, but it is happening," he said.

"In my school we discovered that one of the children was drinking cans of Budweiser before coming to school.

"The amount of drink and drugs that young people are consuming isn't hitting the radar in the way that is should be.

"I'm amazed at the number of 12 and 13 year olds drinking.

"It is phenomenal, most of them are drinking and a lot of them with parental approval".

A separate report last week also heard that Irish people drink twice the EU average.

The report, which was also presented to the Dail by a cross-party group of TD's, said there was 'ample evidence to show that the high consumption rate led to street aggression, violence and even fatalities'.

The report's chairwoman, Cecilia Keaveney said that in the ten years to 1999 per capita alcohol consumption in Ireland rose by 41%.

She said latest EU figures showed that per capita consumption was now almost twice the EU average, with Irish people consuming 15 pints of pure alcohol per year.

"The results are visible in streets running puce with vomit, fist fights in accident and emergency wards and of course the inevitable fracturing of relationships an family groups," said Ms Keaveney.

She also backed calls by TD's for alcohol to be included in the National Drugs Strategy.

Anti-alcohol groups welcomed the two reports but said that the government needed to act instead of simply acknowledging that drinking is excessive in Ireland.

However the alcohol industry attacked the Dail reports and rejected the call for alcohol to be included in a national drugs programme strategy.

The Drinks Manufacturers of Ireland said the report was one sided and out of date.

The report also expressed opposition for the legalisation of cannabis. An estimated 300,000 people in Ireland smoke cannabis.

However the report highlighted links between cannabis consumption and mental illnesses, such as depression and schizophrenia.