scatter gun approach.

[mrspask]

I see that we may be in for another alcohol price hyke.Who agrees that this would have NO effect on binge drinking[usually associated with todays youth] but would effect the usual well behaved,moderate,law abiding,majority of which I am a member.I am not a binge drinker so why should I be penalised for something I do not do?Mr Cameron,you are an idiot,and this suggestion is no vote catcher!!

[sandbach99]

Whippety as a member of the baby boomer generation, which only really only exists upto 1955 at the latest, I am not knowingly suffering any binge drinking illnesses, nor do any of my friends of the same age. We didn't call it binge drinking we called it a good night out

My children were allowed to drink at home, often sticking a finger in a glass, licking it and running off saying 'yuk', as they grew up we used to go to the local social club as a family there they used to see alcohol drunk and people having a good time, yes I have seen them drunk but not very often and and I never heard of them being in or around any alcohol based disorder.

Grandson now 20 also grew up where alcohol was available at home and is more interested in playing football or his car.

Neither myself or my husband ever touched drugs other than he smoked normal cigarettes, my children assure me they never tried drugs, friends of theirs who used drugs did get into alcohol based violence maybe a lot of the trouble today is due to the mixing of alcohol and drugs, after all in chemistry we all saw the results of mixing chemicals.

As for the original question beer varies in price from pub to pub but it is not necessarily the cheapest which has the most trade, and the breweries increase the prices by more han 7p per year anyway. The only ones it will effect are the ones who drink at home I can't see many drinking one can less per week

[NJOK]

I'd guess that any correlation between drugs and violence is demographic, rather than chemical.

The sort of people who are prepared to break the law and dabble in drugs are more likely to break the law in other ways too - including violence.

Obviously, that's a sweeping generalisation. I've tried plenty of drugs and have never been in a fight in my life.

That isn't to say that drugs don't ever lead to violence. Cocaine can increase aggression, addicts of any drug can become agitated through desperation and cannnabis is very rare cases can lead to psychotic episodes.

But in the vast majority of cases, actually being on drugs is less likely to prompt violence. Cannabis is more likely to prompt giggling lethargy and on ecstacy you're more likely to hug someone than hit them. You're even less likely to get in a scrap when they're mixed with booze.

That's not to say that that drugs should be encouraged, kids. Just that groundless assumptions about the effects of drugs, based an idea of 'mixing chemicals', can be misleading.

[mrspask]

NJOK,-with regard to ''not encouraging drugs'' I think to a certain extent,you just did in your next to last paragraph.I think we got off the subject a little-''binge drinking and putting up the cost of drink''.Making the less well off pay in an attempt to curb the kind of bad behavour we are seeing as a result of some young people will be seen as futile[but good tax gathering!]Another thing that worries me is number of young girls who think that getting drunk is cool and trendy.I lived in New Zealand for 11 years and it is the same there with homes getting trashed and the police getting abused and pelted with cans and bottles.Still it seems that everything that is ''cool'' here soon gets to be cool there.I dont pretend to know the answer,there are people who WE pay to sort this kind of thing out.I just wish they would even if it means kicking some a*rse.