Written question asked by Helen Jones (Labour) on Tuesday, 7 February 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 13 February 2006. It was answered by Paul Goggins (Labour) on Monday, 13 February 2006 on behalf of the Home Office.

Under-age Drinking

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made in tackling under-age drinking.

Answer: The Government have put in place a number of measures to tackle under-age drinking. Through initiatives like Challenge 21 it has worked closely with the alcohol industry to ensure that drinks retailers reduce sales to under-18s. Targeted enforcement has reduced the number of illegal sales to children. In the latest Alcohol Misuse Enforcement Campaign, the failure rate for supermarkets was 17 per cent., down from 50 per cent. in summer 2005.

Secondary information