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European Alcohol Policy: Germany
Background -
| Respondent's name: |
Huellinghorst, Rolf |
| Respondent's country: |
Germany |
| Respondent's e-mail address: |
huellinghorst@dhs.de |
| Respondent's telephone number: |
0049 2381 9015 10 |
| Respondent's fax number: |
0049 2381 9015 30 |
| Respondent's present work: |
Manager/Administrator |
| Organisation, position, address (name and number of street, postal code, town): |
German Centre for Addiction Issues (DHS),
Director,
Westenwall 4,
D-59065 Hamm,
www.dhs.de |
| Organisation website: |
No data entered |
| Are you a government employee? |
No |
| Professional qualifications: |
Social worker |
| Number of years in employment in your professional area: |
25 |
| Self-rating of expertise level in the area of alcohol control policy in your country (1 is slightly conversant, 10 is fully conversant): 10 |
| Self-rating of expertise level in the area of the prevention of the harm done by alcohol in your country (1 is slightly conversant, 10 is fully conversant): 10 |
| If you are answering for a jurisdictional region rather than as a country as a whole, which jurisdictional region is it? |
No data entered |
If this questionnaire was completed with the collaboration
of other people, provide organisational reference(s) for each participant.
Organisational references:
 German Centre for Addiction Issues
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Provide organisational reference(s) for nation-wide and/or
regional coalitions (task forces, action groups, collaborative bodies) in
the arena of alcohol control policy.
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| Other background information: |
The DHS is an umbrella The DHS was founded in 1947 as a common platform for all German charitable associations in the field of dependency treatment. Except private organizations and the anonymous self-help project Anonyme Selbsthilfe, all umbrella organizations of outpatient counseling and treatment, in-patient care and help for self-help are members of the DHS.
organisation |
Politics, policies and priorities -
| Do relevant politicians/policy makers refer to alcohol control policy in a manner that suggests it is a priority area? |
Yes, in documents |
Document references: Actionplan Drug and Addiction
| Do relevant politicians/policy makers refer to the prevention of the harm done by alcohol in a
manner that suggests it is a priority area? |
Yes, in documents |
Document references:Actionplan Drug and Addiction
| In your opinion, taking into account everything you know,
what level of real priority does the present government place on alcohol control policy? (1 is low priority, mostly rhetoric; 10 is high priority, much action) |
4 |
| In your opinion, taking into account everything you know,
what level of real priority does the present government place on the prevention of the harm done by alcohol? (1 is low priority, mostly rhetoric; 10 is high priority, much action) |
4 |
| What is the recent trend (past several years) in resource allocation to
alcohol control policy and programmes to prevent the harm done by alcohol? |
Small increase in resources |
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What was the amount of funds allocated to alcohol control policy and programmes to prevent the harm done by alcohol in the most recent national budget (Euro):
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No data entered |
| Budget year: |
No data entered |
| Regional level, governmental policy documents on alcohol policy and on preventing the harm done by alcohol have been published in the following areas: |
Drinking and driving.
Education and public awareness.
Availability of alcohol, including licensing.
Sales to minors.
Reducing harm in drinking environments.
Help and treatment for alcohol problems.
Help and treatment for family members.
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| Non-governmental (private enterprise, research institute, NGO, etc.) policy
documents on alcohol control policy and programmes to prevent the harm done by alcohol have been published in the following areas: |
Drinking and driving.
Education and public awareness.
Taxation of alcohol products.
Availability of alcohol, including licensing.
Sales to minors.
Alcohol advertising, promotion and sponsorship.
Reducing harm in drinking environments.
Help and treatment for alcohol problems.
Help and treatment for family members.
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Programmes -
| How available are programmes for preventing the harm done by alcohol? Provide document
reference(s) for some of the key programmes that exemplify high quality. (1 is not available; 5 is widely available) |
Public education through mass media
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4 |
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Comprehensive community based
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2 |
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Home/family
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2 |
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School
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5 |
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College
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4 |
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University
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2 |
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Work place
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4 |
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Primary health care
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3 |
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Hospital/clinic
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3 |
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Internet
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4 |
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Social welfare and youth services
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4 |
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Custodial settings (prisons, probation, etc.)
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3 |
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| Other: |
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Funding -
| Are funds dedicated to alcohol control policy and programmes to prevent the harm done by alcohol clearly identifiable in the most recent national budget? |
Funds are available for alcohol, but mixed in with other funding and hard or impossible to link explicitly with alcohol. |
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The arena/activities are indicated for which earmarked funds are provided:
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| Are funds dedicated to alcohol control policy and/or programmes to prevent the harm done by alcohol clearly identifiable
in the budgets of non-governmental institutions (foundations, private institutes, welfare societies, professional groups, etc, associations)? |
No |
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The arena/activities are indicated for which earmarked funds are provided:
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Personal evaluation of the state of the field -
| List up to five key recent advances in your country
related to alcohol control policy: |
- Since 2nd August 2004 there is an excise for Alcopops. It is a special tax additional to the existing taxes for this kind of alcohol beverage. The aim of this tax is to reduce the persistent alcohol consumption of young people.
- In 1998 a blood alcohol concentration limit of 0.05 per cent was introduced. The frequency and extent of police controls have been intensified. Implementin the controls has been made easier for the police by equating the breath alcohol measurement with the blood alcohol measurement in 1998.
- In July 2004 the law for the protection of youth in public was extended. Alcopops with more than 1.2 per cent alcohol by volume have to label with the following advice: It is not allowed that young people under 18 purchase this kind of alcoholic drink.
- In the new version of the law for the protection of youth in April 2003, alcohol advertising is prohibited in all cinemas before 6 p.m..
- The actionplan on Drugs and Addiction, which included alcohol related problems |
| List up to five key recent
advances in your country related to the prevention of the harm done by alcohol: |
- In 1998 a blood alcohol concentration limit of 0.05 per cent was introduced. The frequency and extent of police controls have been intensified. Implementin the controls has been made easier for the police by equating the breath alcohol measurement with the blood alcohol measurement in 1998.
- In July 2004 the law for the protection of youth in public was extended. Alcopops with more than 1.2 per cent alcohol by volume have to label with the following advice: It is not allowed that young people under 18 purchase this kind of alcoholic drink.
- The results of the Health behavior on school-aged children of WHO showed that the alcohol consumption of 15 year old pupil in Germany has been increased since 1993, also increased the getting drunk rate in this group. When the results were published, the DHS and its member organisations demanded effective measures from the government to reduce the rates. The government reacted and increased their activities on prevention programms on alcohol. Therefore special brochures are printed, special Internet offers are developed, telefon help hotlines are introduced, etc..
- No data entered
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| List up to five key barriers/obstacles/issues
that stand in the way of achieving, in
your country, action on alcohol control policy: |
- The public awareness about the effects of alcohol and alcohol consumption has to be change. Most of the people are not well informed about the effects and impact of alcohol. The alcohol industry takes advantage of the public inexperience and promotes the positiv effects of alcohol consumption. They give the public the impression that alcohol consumption is harmless and its the responsibilty of the consumers how much they drink.
- In Germany is a strong alcohol lobby. Every year the alcohol industry donates a lot of money to the parties. The fight against the demand of the non-governmental health organisations to reduce the consumption of pure alcohol per capita. The industry threatens with the loss of workplaces. Therefore the government weaken their measures to reduce alcohol consumption.
- Most of the politicians are not interested in alcohol policy. They pay not much intention to national and international development.
- No data entered
- No data entered |
| List up to five key barriers/obstacles/issues
that stand in the way of achieving, in
your country, action on the prevention of the harm done by alcohol: |
- The strong alcohol lobby, sponsered by the alcohol industry
- The public awareness about the effects and impact of alcohol consumption.
- We need more results about the effectiveness of measures and programms on prevention. We need an extensive evaluation of the programms.
- The increasing number of prevention activities sponsered by the alcohol industry has two effects: The industry uses their activies for public relation to show how responsible they are. On the other hand public health organisations who have taken money from the alcohol industry will lost their independence and their can be easily influenced by the drinks industry.
- No data entered |
| List, in descending order of importance, up to
five key advances that are needed to support implementation of evidence-based alcohol control policy in your country: |
- More public relations about the impact and effects of alcohol consumption. This is important to develop a public awareness not to underestimate the consequences of alcohol consumption.
- Inform more people, especially health professionals, members of non-governmental organisations, politicians about evidence-based alcohol control policy.
- More campaignes in media e.g. TV, Radio about alcohol.
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| List, in descending order of importance, up to five key changes that are needed in
your country, to achieve the advances above: |
- Politicians, decision makers, experts have to change their mind that the consequences of alcohol consumption is a public health issue. The aim of reduction the consumption rate of pure alcohol per capita must have a high priority.
- Qualifying of experts, which lobby for the public health interests.
- It is important that public have to swing of opinion that alcohol is a normal sort of food to alcohol is a legal drug which can cause serious health consequences.
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| List, in descending order of importance, up to five key advances that are needed to
support implementation of evidence-based the prevention of the harm done by alcohol in your
country: |
- It is important to introduce taxes on all alcohol beverage, including white and red wine.
- Licensing of alcohol sales offer, including public events. If somebody have contravened the law for protection of youth in public and alcohol have been sold to under age young people, this person will lost the license.
- No alcohol advertising on public places or nearby institutions for children and young people, e.g. school, kindergarten.
- More information campaignes for the public and target groups.
- No sponsoring of sports and sports teams by the alcohol industry. |
| List, in descending order of importance, up to five key changes that are needed in
your country, to achieve the advances above: |
- It is important to change the tax law. But before most of the politicians have to convinced of the advantages of higher taxes. the total revenue of alcohol taxes were 3.5 billion Euros in 2003.The negative consequences of alcohol cost Germany 20.2 billion Euros. In this relation the taxes cannot balance the cost of alcohol related harm and morbidity.
- The politicians, decision makers have to understand at the conviction that is elementary to protect children and young people. It is their task to make punishment more severe for the people or companies, which sell alcoholic beverage to under aged children. Perhaps it is necessary to increase the age-limit from 16 to 18 years for wine and beer.
- It is necessary to reduce the self-regulation of alcohol advertising, sponsoring and alcohol sales by extending the law of protection of the youth in public.
- The process of the implementation of the prevention law must be speed up. In this law the funding of prevention programms will be determined. These action would be limited the number of prevention programms and campaigns. In this case a selection of measures are necessary and the chance of the implementation of best practice programms could be bigger.
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Comments
Inclusive dates of data entry
| From: 20-4-2005 To: 6-5-2005 |
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