New Government procedures to cut underage drinking have been welcomed with open arms by the boss of Basildon Council, Bala Mahendran. He said: “We welcome the new legislation from Government to tighten the law. We work hard throughout the year to tackle underage drinking with campaigns and initiatives, such as the current Challenge 25 scheme.” The underage drinking scheme being put into place, changes the challenge age from the current 21 to 25, with 108 retailers out of the 146 across the Basildon area having signed up so far.
As of Friday 29th January, police can now seize alcohol from youths, who are believed to be under 18. But, unlike previous legislation, the police do not have to prove the culprits intended to consume the alcohol themselves. Previously, police were only allowed to send youngsters 16 and above home, when causing trouble, but this has been dropped to the age of 10 along with the scheme. Under new measures a new offence has also been created for children under the age of 18 who can now be arrested for persistently possessing alcohol in a public place. Any shopkeepers caught selling booze to anyone under 18 twice in three months will automatically lose their licence.
Tags: alcohol, challenge, council, drinking, government, law police, licence, possession, public, trouble, underage, youths