Controls On Liquor Advertising Wanted

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31129, 4 August 1966, Page 2

Controls On Liquor Advertising Wanted

WZ. Press Association) WELLINGTON, August 3. There was much justification for the curtailment of liquor advertising and also for special control to remove the subtleties of its suggestions, the the general superintendent of the New Zealand Alliance, Mr T. J. Young, said at the annual meeting today. Mr Young quoted a vodka advertisement which promised several benefits to consumers. "Vodka,” Mr Young said, "described as a spirituous liquor that is odourless,

colourless and tasteless, is believed a frequent drink to make an innocent maiden hopeless, shameless and heedless. •The growing incidence of illegitimacy is stated to be induced in great part from access of teen-agers to liquor. The Dean of Wellington is reported as saying that many of these girls are unaware of the presence of alcohol at the time it is given.” He said there was a threat that the inception of private broadcasting by pirate radio operations would by-pass the broadcasting ban on liquor advertising and offer another avenue for liquor pressure.” Reducing the drinking age was the one thing which would horrify New Zealanders as much as changing the 6 p.m. closing hour, Mr Young said. “Early drinking habits often lead to disrupted and broken lives at an early age. It’s recognised that the greatest number of alcoholics are those who commence drinking before 21 years of age,” Mr Young said. He said the incidence of liquor in ju'venile crime had increased alarmingly in recent years. "Although physical, emotional and mental development varies from person to person, there is yet much sound reason for accepting 21 years as a minimum for the

legal drinking age,” Mr Young said. “The Commissioner of Police is rightly disturbed and advocates lowering the drinking age as a means of exercising restraint on excessive drinking at this age, but what are the consequences?” “The drinking age of 18 years will bring in 16 and 17-year-olds illegally as 19 and 20-year-olds come in illegally now. “It is to be inferred from this statement that persons drinking at 21 years—being the legal age—to do so under supervision of licensed premises and avoid excessive drinking? One might wish it were so but know that this is not necessarily the case.”