Roxon Reaffirms Drink Stand
The Age
Monday June 16, 2008
SHE says just one glass of wine is enough to put her to sleep and it is not that often she would have a three-glass splurge.
This 41-year-old mother of a young child, and modest drinker, is Health Minister Nicola Roxon, and she is determined to tackle binge drinking, which new guidelines could define as consuming as little as four middies of beer in one sitting. As the battle over the Federal Government's tax on alcopops heats up with the launch of an advertisement by the alcohol industry targetting voters in the byelection in Gippsland, Ms Roxon yesterday reaffirmed the Government's stand. Alcohol abuse was a serious social issue that cost the community $15 billion a year, she said. "The only people who seem to think this is not a problem are the alcohol industry and the Liberal Party." Ms Roxon refused to confirm reports that a review of national guidelines conducted by the National Health and Medical Research Council, due to be released next month, will conclude that more than four standard drinks a day constitutes a binge.
© 2008 The Age
