Greens push for bans on liquor advertising

Date
    January 3, 2014


The Greens will push for a ban on the promotion of alcohol in sport, arguing that it provides a loophole for the alcohol industry to target children.

Greens health spokesman Richard Di Natale said he would move for a Senate inquiry into alcohol promotion to children when Federal Parliament returns next month.      


Senator Di Natale said there was growing community concern about drunken violence and other alcohol-related problems.


The Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice does not allow alcohol advertising before 8.30pm, but in what Senator Di Natale called ''a huge loophole'', alcohol ads can be shown at any time of day as part of a live sporting broadcast.

Senator Di Natale said this meant thousands of children being exposed to alcohol advertising while watching sporting events, such as the final Ashes Test, which begins in Sydney on Friday. ''A young child who sits down to watch that will be bombarded with messages encouraging them to drink,'' he said. ''That's a huge problem, and that loophole needs to be closed.''

Senator Di Natale said the inquiry would also consider whether a ban or tougher regulations on sports sponsorship were necessary.

"Our major codes continue to promote alcohol consumption to a very young and impressionable audience," he said.      

Carlton United Breweries sponsors Cricket Australia, the AFL and NRL. The NRL is also sponsored by Campari.

Senator Di Natale called on those sporting bodies to follow the example of the football A-League and Netball Australia in refusing alcohol sponsorship.

The National Alliance for Action on Alcohol has long called for a ban on alcohol advertising during live sport. Its co-chairman, Todd Harper, said an inquiry was needed.

''Given the rates of harm that we're seeing with young people, we really need to do much better in the way we control promotion of alcohol to young people," he said.

More than 94 per cent of students aged 12 to 17 report having seen alcohol advertising on television.

The alliance says half of all alcohol advertising appears during children's popular viewing times.

Mike Daube, the Public Health Association of Australia's spokesman on alcohol, also backed the push for an inquiry, saying major sporting codes were ''swimming'' in alcohol sponsorship.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/greens-push-for-bans-on-liquor-advertising-20140102-307xs.html#ixzz2pHGDsPC5

I am no green, but I am all in favour of that

Family First also took the stance of closing this loophole as far back as 2004. Fielding spoke out about it at least once.

I expect that this would enjoy some broad support across the minor parties. It seems that the major parties are not yet on board.

I think closing this loophole would be a good idea. The law should be consistent.

Betting is another scourge that mars our sports coverage. What are we teaching our kids - that drinking alcohol and betting should be encouraged?

Lets face it..booze and drug fueled violence fills our emergency departments on weekends and during holiday periods as well as destroys families.
Banning advertising is a beginning but we now have a PM who Coward punched Arab Joe during a Rugby match at uni and threatened to beat a woman senseless during the same period and there is no evidence that Abbott's violent behaviour was fueled by booze and drugs. We also know that it wasn't roid rage because he's a scrawny little runt.

As a party on its way out, the Greens are trying everything they can think of to appeal to a wider audience.
Nobody's applauding any more.

In this instance I'm in agreement with the Greens

Should be warning labels all over those nice labels -- nice graphic warnings showing kids deprived of opportunity life-long because they had one or more alcoholic parents

warnings showing kids living in squalor and humiliation because all dad's money goes on booze and decent clothing, shoes, dental work, food, housing etc. rank way down dad's list of priorities

warnings showing kids depressed and suicidal at eight years of age because of the destruction wrought on their lives by alcoholic parents

warnings showing kids beaten, bruised, beyond tears, hungry, in rags, living in poo-holes because dad and possibly mum are useless drunks

warnings showing kids being raped by dad's mates while dad's blotto over by the bar-b-que pit or vomiting his guts out down the back yard

Damn right I support the Greens and anyone else who steps up against the alcoholic scourge

wowsers

Cliff48 wrote on Jan 3^rd, 2014 at 4:30pm:


No, the greens agree with cods...

What are your views on it?

Or are you just here trolling?