Examining Scotland's thirst for drink

In this week's reader's article, Julie Paterson of Abington, near Biggar - who has just returned from a year travelling around Australia - looks at Holyrood's attempts to reform drink laws.

DRINK LAW DEBATE LEAVES POLITICAL HANGOVER

As a Scottish taxpayer I could feel nothing but embarrassment over the "black day" for Scottish politics when the Scottish Parliament attempted to debate the Licensing (Scotland) Bill.

Many people do not realise that they are binge drinking

The parliament, which offered us so much potential, seems in so many ways to be nothing but a constant source of disappointment.

A source of controversy and scandal from the very outset, before the building was even finished, the recent proceedings - which have given the tabloids their headlines on a plate - appear to have further reinforced this idea in the mindset of Scottish people.

Furthermore, the real issue may not be the laws concerning the sale of alcohol in supermarkets and off-licences and the opening hours of bars and clubs, but why the binge drinking culture is so ingrained into the Scottish mentality in the first place.

Growing up in a drinking culture, indulging and over-indulging in alcohol becomes second nature and it seems fair to assume that many people, myself and my friends included, don't actually realise that they are "binge drinkers".

Drink responsibly

Our thirst for alcohol is estimated to cost the NHS £110m a year and it has to be asked why there is such a discrepancy between what the health professionals would consider acceptable and what the public considers acceptable.

How do you go about trying to teach people to drink responsibly and safely when they think that is exactly what they are doing?

In Scotland alcohol has been synonymous with having a good time for so long that it may be impossible to change the perception.

Daily limit

It seems obvious that the proposed change to the law, the restriction of alcohol sales to 10am to 10pm, will have two obvious effects - the consumer will have less choice and the supermarkets and off-licences less business.

Presumably a vast majority of the population will still go out on a Friday and Saturday night and drink more than the recommended daily limit.

Perhaps in a further five years time the Scottish Parliament might be in a better position to suggest how to approach these issues.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and are not endorsed by the BBC.

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We asked for your views on Julie Paterson's article. The following represents the balance of opinions we received.

My husband lived in Scotland for seven years back in the 1970s, at a time when he was a very heavy drinker. For the past 11 years we have been spending at least a month every summer in Scotland and spend a lot of time with old friends who knew my husband in his drinking days. Although we are now both recovering alcoholics and never touch a drink, we still enjoy the pub culture in Scotland where we meet friends, eat meals and attend quiz nights. The social function of the neighbourhood pub is very different from here in the States, where the primary reason for going to a bar is to drink as much as possible. We do just fine with a glass of ginger beer (especially now that ice is more readily available!) or a Coke. What has been rather difficult, though, is getting our friends to accept the fact that we can't drink. It's actually easier in the pubs to be a non-drinker than it is at someone's home where the tradition of hospitality usually includes an immediate offer of some type of alcohol and a refusal can be interpreted as a snub. We've even encountered outright hostility, albeit not from long-time friends, over our insistence that, yes, one small drink can do us harm. The concept of not being able to drink at all seems so foreign to most of the Scots we know, that they are simply incredulous over the idea. I don't mean to imply that our friends are all a bunch of drunks, but the awareness of the physiological and psychological aspects of alcoholism does not seem to be part of the general culture. I can't comment on the proposed legislation regarding drinking laws, but I agree with Stephanie Boyd that perhaps what's needed, more than new laws is a cultural awareness that socializing does not have to include drinking.
Karen Czajkowski, Webster, US

Julie gets confused between the parliament and the executive (the government). What was clear during the progression of this bill was that the Labour and Liberal MSPs were at loggerheads over which way to go - 24 hours, not 24 hours; same for off-licences, not the same for off-licences. They (the executive) all got into such a mess. The others who make up "the parliament" and whose position was perfectly consistent got drawn in to the "oh, its that parliament" argument. No wonder people get disappointed. You make some good points but try to distinguish between the parliament and the Labour /Liberal people who form the executive.
Douglas, Dunfermline

Having grown up in Hong Kong in the 80s and 90s where 24-hour drinking seems to have always been around, I never witnessed or took part in such heavy binge drinking as when I moved back to Scotland in the late 90s. Yes, we were out in the clubs and pubs till 5 or 6am but there was never any rush to pile as much booze down as possible before time was called, whereas here everyone here seems to drink as quickly as possible to get as much in before last orders. It may take a while, but when folk realise they are not under time pressure they will end up drinking at a more moderate speed and not get so lashed.
Rick , Edinburgh

Toni McColl, may I offer my compliments on such an accurate analysis of a long-term problem affecting the entire UK, which has become significantly worse since 1997.
Keith Banks, London

I lived in Scotland for 20 years and was a social outcast because I didn't automatically associate drinking with having a good time. If you don't drink people go on and on and on about how boring you are, etc. Working class Scots seem obsessed by alcohol, cigarettes and fatty foods. I couldn't believe the difference when I moved back to England, here society just has a totally different outlook and it's that that needs to be changed before any other measures will work.
Helen, Lancaster

I think what a lot of people forget is that the licensing laws in Scotland to allow drinking into the early hours of the morning are a recent development. Prior to this we were subject to opening times of 5pm and closing at 9pm or 10pm. Finish your work now and you have time to go home, relax, get freshened up and then stroll along to the pub. Prior to this it was finish work, straight to the pub and then drink as much as you can before closing. This is the reason why us Scots are considered "drink monsters" unlike our English counterparts, who have always had a more relaxed approach to licensing.
Marc, Glasgow

Yes I think it has got something to do with the harsh climate of Scotland plus a healthy dose of Calvinist guilt and repression. I have lived in Cairo for some time now, and I still find it amazing to be living in a culture that is not supported by alcohol. Most folk are entirely happy to while away the hours in cafes drinking tea and coffee, chatting, playing chess and backgammon and generally having a good time. Of course I could buy alcohol if I wanted to but I would have to travel to the more European parts of town to find an off-licence. How marvellous to be able to walk through the streets at any time of the day or night and not have to worry that the two guys walking towards me might decide to kick my head in simply because they were drunk and felt like it. How wonderful to be out of that culture of fear and violence. When I was last back in Glasgow, I walked from Partick up to Great Western Road at some time early on a Saturday morning and every single person I saw was reeling drunk. I started laughing at the weirdness of it all.
L Ruddick, Cairo

If we ever want to get rid of binge drinking we need to find some way of convincing the public there are other ways to enjoy yourself. It seems to be almost a dogmatic response now whenever someone is asked why they drink it's always "I want to have a bit of fun", we need to promote other ways.
RS, Glasgow

I think we need to be careful how we label binge drinking. I would imagine that a good 90% of the indigenous Scottish population are, were or will become at some stage binge drinkers. The negative aspects are given far too much press. Yes it can be bad for you and yes it can cause anti-social behaviour. However, not everyone is affected. And binge drinking in the late teens and early twenties is far preferable to chronic alcoholism. Most people binge drink in the years between 18 and 24, then calm down and suffer, or cause no ill effects. These people also quite enjoy the odd binge, I know I do. The people who have the problems or fight, or beat their wives - these are people whose life seems unbearable when sober, who are absolutely in a hopeless position. Stop the cycle of the forgotten, or ignored, males in the most dreadful of all lives - the very people who turn to drink and drugs. This will stop the related problems more effectively.
Martin Connolly, Glasgow

There are a plethora of reasons in Scotland for this drink culture. Many people who drink to excess are doing so for reasons of escapism related to their poverty or lack of opportunity. The fact that there are so many people working in low paid demanding jobs with long hours suggests some may be indulging in too much alcohol as a stress release and a way to wind down and stop their brain from doing overtime. Also it may sound like a cop-out but the weather in Scotland is usually so bad that there are not many things to do apart from go to the pub. No-one wants to go for a walk or jogging, etc, in the rain and you need money to join a gym as they are quite expensive. Millions of people every week watch soap operas that are situated round a pub environment and of course there is the old idea that some are so socially repressed that they drink to let their inhibitions go. Whatever the reason the only way to tackle this issue is by starting with the underlying social problems and providing easily accessible education on the dangers of drink.
Toni McColl, Glasgow, Scotland

As a Scottish person living in Northern Ireland I am subject to strict legislation on the sale of alcohol. The supermarkets in this country have separate off-licences to discourage consumers from purchasing alcohol as part of their "regular" shopping and the pubs and clubs close early, the latest opening being 1am. This has made absolutely no difference to the drinking culture, as with Scotland, drinking is synonymous with having a "good time". The public make no attempt to enjoy alcohol responsibly and the whole purpose of going to a pub or club is to drink to excess. The struggle in Northern Ireland to have a parliament seems soiled by Scotland's fascination with petty legislation. There should be a real agenda for change and a determination to celebrate the culture of our country. I am proud to be Scottish, but I am ashamed of the Scottish Parliament.
Kristeen Sutherland, Belfast

Totally agree, as far I see there is the same amount of binge drinking happening now as there always has been in Scotland. It's the only escape for most of us to enjoy ourselves away from this wet and cold place we call home. Why should we be penalised now for something that our parents and grandparents have done for years? In the long term it may hit the shops' profits but I will be stocking up like a good little squirrel before this stupid law becomes reality. I used to laugh at people when they mentioned nanny state, now I'm a true believer!
Derek Scougall, Falkirk, UK

Isn't it all tied up with decades of emotional repression? Scots only ever seem to give vent to their feelings when they've got a bellyful of alcohol. If you are constantly told not to express any emotions or draw attention to yourself, then isn't the association of drinking with a "good time" somewhat inevitable?
Gary, Glasgow

A culture shift can't be achieved through legislation alone. The sad fact is that for many Scots, a social occasion implies a drink. Messages on binge drinking haven't helped. Most adults don't want to be lectured like a child on the implications of having four drinks instead of three - I know I certainly don't - but the current message doesn't take account of the difference between getting tipsy and going on an all-out bender! It's incredibly patronising. Perhaps if the parliament were to cease the nannying learned from Westminster, stop focusing on drink alone and start promoting other aspects of our culture, Scots would realise that socialising needn't involve drink. Julie Paterson is right on the mark with regard to the disappointment created by the Scottish parliament. They are in an unrivalled position to proactively promote and encourage rather than reactively legislate on social and cultural issues. About time we saw more of the former and rather less of the latter.
Stephanie Boyd, Edinburgh, Scotland