‘Bad stars fuel teenage drink abuse’

POP queen Britney Spears and Hollywood hard man Colin Farrell are dangerous role models for youngsters, a conference on under-age drinking heard yesterday.

One-in-five 12 to 17 year olds have been drunk, according to a survey.

And the average age young Irish people begin to drink is 13 years - many years younger than a generation ago.

Today’s youngsters are more influenced by the exploits of pop icons Britney and Colin than by advertisements for alcohol itself.

“Kids regard alcohol as being massively central to popular culture,” said Larry Ryan, of Behaviour & Attitudes market research firm.

Mr Ryan was commissioned by Mature Enjoyment of Alcohol in Society (MEAS), a group that promotes responsibility in the drinks industry, to lift the lid on underage drinking.

“For one-in-five 12 to 17 year olds alcohol is normal in their peer group,” he told the MEAS Alcohol and Young People conference.

While 5% of 12 to 13 year olds drink regularly, 43% of 16 to 17 year olds are regular drinkers.

The conference heard 14% of 12 to 13 year olds, 28% of 14 and 15 year olds and 54% of 16 and 17 year olds have drunk with parental consent.

“The extent to which young people claim to have parental consent for some of their drinking is striking,” said Mr Ryan.

“I’ve heard of people around 13 starting drinking, but it’s mainly when they are 15 to 16,” said Bernie O’Callaghan, a transition year pupil from Mallow, Co Cork, who surveyed local teens.

She and colleagues Fiona Barry, Caoimhe Kelleher, Hannah Dennehy, Sharon Buckley and Pamela Kent presented their findings to the conference.

“There is peer pressure. If one group starts, another wants to experiment and try alcohol as well,” said Ms Dennehy.

MEAS has launched an advertising drive - Is your drinking affecting their thinking? - urging parents to act as role models.