THE Minister of State for Youth Affairs last night said under age drinking on the streets of Irish cities was now a major problem. Mr Bernard Allen said "More and more I have noticed young people openly drinking on the streets. One day last week, I came across no less than eight groups of young people who were under age and who had bags full of cans of beer, and who were drinking openly on the street by day.
"I am not advocating a complete ban on open air locations, but there is a place for controlled drinking. What I am concerned about is that groups of young people are drinking in broad daylight, clearly in breach of the law. If I can come across such groups I wonder why the gardai are not coming across them and why the law is not being enforced in this regard."
Mr Allen said that as Minister for Youth Affairs, as well as Sport, he believed serious damage was being done to society and to young people "because of what is now being regarded as the norm". He added "I am also extremely concerned by some drink manufacturers campaigns to encourage further underage drinking, and especially by the advent on the open market of alcohol based fruit drinks. Obviously, they have set out to attract young people into a drink regime and I believe that these manufacturers, despite their protestations, are targeting young people. This, I believe to be irresponsible and anti-social."
As a member of the Ministerial task force on drugs, Mr Allen went on, he would seek that the matter be given top priority by the Government, and would also be expressing his views to the Minister for Justice, Mrs Owen.
"It is now time that instead of accepting the high profile, highly expensive, highly polished advertising campaign to glamourise under age drinking, we started asking the hard questions about where as a nation we are going, and how do we shout stop. My area of responsibility, the sport and youth affairs area, is one I intend to use as a preventative element in the fight against crime and drugs."
Mr Allen was speaking at the launch of the Ballincollig Youth Committee's Youth Directory in Cork.