Alcohol related issues in the News

Boy, 17, dies after drinking two pints of neat vodka on night out in Croydon
Peter Dominiczak, 16 Mar 2011

A teenager has died after downing two pints of neat vodka while playing a drinking game, his friends said today. Louis Buxton, 17, died on Saturday morning after being taken to hospital following a drinking session with friends in Croydon, south London, the previous night.

The promising footballer was taken to Croydon University Hospital after his friends noticed he was "in trouble" after drinking the vodka.

Emotional tributes were today paid to Louis, a popular pupil at Langley Park School for Boys in Beckenham, south east London. One close friend wrote on a website: "Everyone will learn from this. It's making everyone think twice before drinking. I can tell some of his friends blame themselves as they were all together that night." The friend added: "All of us are broken because you left. No words will ever express what you were. I'm happy that I got to be a part of your life."

Carl Norman, coach of the team Louis played for, Beckenham Town Football Club, today said he had spoken to some of the other players on the team who told him that the teenager had died after downing two pints of vodka. He said: "I got a message from one of the other lads over the weekend saying he had downed two pints of neat vodka and was rushed to hospital. "Louis was a really nice guy with a great sense of humour. He was the team joker but always had time for encouraging the younger lads. He was a great lad and will be really missed."

Friends of the teen held a memorial for him on Sunday night, laying white roses outside the school. Headteacher Rob Northcott added: "Louis was a nice boy. There are a lot of us who are missing him. I have been with his family over the past couple of days and we are desperate to find out what happened."

A police spokesman said: "At this stage, we are treating the death as unexplained and await the results from the post-mortem examination."

By London Evening Standard

Alcohol death warning
2.09PM Mon Feb 21 2011

Doctors are warning an extra 250,000 people could die from alcohol abuse in the next twenty years if urgent action is not taken.

The team, lead by the former head of the Royal College of GPs, compared trends in alcohol related illness here in the UK and other countries.They found that the liver death rate in the UK is 11.4 per 100,000 people, more than double that of other countries with similar drinking cultures and genetic backgrounds such as Australia, Holland, New Zealand and Sweden.

The authors said UK drinks producers and retailers are "reliant on people risking their health to provide profits" and 'marginal measures' proposed by the government such as banning the sale of alcohol below cost price and increasing duty on high-strength beer would have very little impact.

By: ITV News Watch video

'Drunk' smash and drag
10.11AM Mon Feb 21 2011

A doctor who appeared to be drunk crashed his car into a shop and tried to help himself to a bottle of beer.

The whole incident was caught on camera in Massachusetts.The driver can be seen getting out of the car and appears to try and grab a beer. But the bottle was just out of his reach so he calmly got back into his car and drove off. Police have charged him with drink driving.

By: ITV News Watch video

Former government adviser David Nutt on the dangers of alcohol, the harm caused by criminalisation and why he's not a 'legaliser's
David Shariatmadari and Richard Sprenger, Monday 10 January 2011

By: The Guardian Watch video