It’s time we all take responsibility for our risky binge-drinking culture

TV ads for beer establish an atmosphere and context of collective happiness, writies Terry Prone

Fergus Finlay got it wrong. We clear on that? The minute I heard that Diageo was funding his campaign against alcohol abuse, I thought it was a mistake. I wasn’t going to come out and say so, because Fergus Finlay is like one of those dogs with automatically locking jaws — once he gets his teeth in your leg, you never shake him off. But the truth is, I felt he was going the MEAS road, and this is not a road to go.

MEAS is a registered charity —God alone knows why it has that status — sponsored by the drinks industry to make the drinks industry look responsible. MEAS — it stands for Mature Enjoyment of Alcohol in Society — takes itself very seriously. It actually states, as a article of faith, that “alcohol must be respected.” It must? Says who? What happens if it isn’t? And, assuming we were to buy into this concept of respecting commodities, must we respect 10-year-old malt more than a wine cooler?