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You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/society/live/2016/jan/22/britain-on-the-booze-live
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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Britain on the booze - live | Britain on the booze - live |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 8.30pm GMT | |
| 20:30 | |
| And here’s what Cardiff police will be contending with tonight | |
| 8.20pm GMT | |
| 20:20 | |
| Anyone up for a prink? | |
| Steven Morris | |
| The pressure on hospitals in Wales caused by alcohol is huge. According to the devolved government, almost 1,200 people are admitted to hospital with alcohol-related conditions in Wales every week. Approximately 1,500 deaths are attributable to alcohol each year (1 in 20 of all deaths). | |
| At the busiest times as many as 70% of attendances at some A&E departments are as a result of excessive alcohol consumption. | |
| The potential for problem drinking in Cardiff city centre in particularly acute. More than 3m come into the centre of the Welsh capital in a typical month. The majority of the partying takes place within a square mile and there is no shortage of choice of watering hole – there are 300 licensed premises. | |
| “Pre-loading” - drinking at home or at a friend’s before hitting the streets late in the evening – is seen as a particular problem for the emergency services. | |
| Little wonder health chiefs and other emergency services have taken innovative measures to tackle problem drinking. One such project is the Cardiff ATC – alcohol treatment centre, a collaboration between Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, local councils, South Wales police, the Welsh Ambulance service and Cardiff Street Pastors. | |
| Right now, the police are preparing for the evening with a “Cardiff After Dark” meeting in the Welsh capital’s main police station. | |
| Sergeant Gavin Howard briefs his team on what they’re doing tonight, with a slideshow with some interesting facts and figures. Last month there were 145 people treated at the ATC – the alcohol treatment centre run by the local health board and others, which is designed to ease pressure on hospital A&E staff by treating people with minor injuries and people suffering from too much drink. | |
| Owen reminds officers to look out for revellers who “pre-load” - drink heavily and cheaply at home before heading into the city centre (the groovy alternative word the kids are using is “prink” - pre-drink. | |
| The emphasis here is that this is very much a team effort – police, NHS staff, volunteer street pastors, council workers operating together. “We’re Team Cardiff,” says Howard. The “Cardiff model” is being looked at by cities not just in the UK but across the world. | |
| All important meal-break times and overtime are also discussed. | |
| Then it all goes a bit Hill Street Blues (you may have to be a certain age – anyone remember the “Let’s be careful out there” warning before cops were sent on to the streets of a never-named US city. Here’s a link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jmg86CRBBtw | |
| Sgt Howard’s version is: “Everyone have a safe night, kit up and get out there.” | |
| Updated | |
| at 8.25pm GMT | |
| 8.20pm GMT | |
| 20:20 | |
| We’ll head out to hear from some of our correspondents in just two minutes, but before we do, it’s been pointed out that we’re a bit absent in the northeast tonight. Apologies. Not everything works out in this business. But to make up for it, Sarah Boseley has been finding out more about the impact on hospitals in the region. | |
| The headline figure is this: as many as 2 in 7 visits to A and E in the northeast are alcohol related. Read that in conjunction with this piece which reveals rising numbers of patients being turned away from A and E. | |
| Of course, it’s not just the northeast. Every two minutes, someone somewhere goes to A and E because of something they’ve drunk. | |
| 8.03pm GMT | 8.03pm GMT |
| 20:03 | 20:03 |
| Now part of the drink problem is of course down to the industry, which sells about £45bn worth of alcohol in Britain every year. Sarah Boseley has an exclusive story tonight which establishes that problem drinkers make up the lion’s share of the market for drinks companies, a controversial point given that the industry insists it supports responsible drinking. | Now part of the drink problem is of course down to the industry, which sells about £45bn worth of alcohol in Britain every year. Sarah Boseley has an exclusive story tonight which establishes that problem drinkers make up the lion’s share of the market for drinks companies, a controversial point given that the industry insists it supports responsible drinking. |
| What this graphic shows is that the 20 percent of people considered harmful or risky drinkers account for almost two-thirds of the booze market. | What this graphic shows is that the 20 percent of people considered harmful or risky drinkers account for almost two-thirds of the booze market. |
| 7.47pm GMT | 7.47pm GMT |
| 19:47 | 19:47 |
| Now if there’s not much on television, watch this instead: a really compelling short film about alcohol and us. Two things really stand out here: that nine million of us drink more than we should (according to government guidelines)... | Now if there’s not much on television, watch this instead: a really compelling short film about alcohol and us. Two things really stand out here: that nine million of us drink more than we should (according to government guidelines)... |
| ....and that it is not just problem drinkers who damage their health. As one of the contributors says, if alcohol was a new drug seeking approval today, it would not get a look in. | ....and that it is not just problem drinkers who damage their health. As one of the contributors says, if alcohol was a new drug seeking approval today, it would not get a look in. |
| 7.36pm GMT | 7.36pm GMT |
| 19:36 | 19:36 |
| As I said earlier, our team is in half a dozen cities up and down the country. This map shows where they are. Twitter accounts are as follows: Scotland @libby_brooks; Liverpool @zoesqwilliams; Manchester @joshhalliday; Stoke @jessicaelgot; Leicester @mskatelyons; Cardiff @stevenmorris20; Southampton @lisaocarroll. And I’m @markriceoxley69 in London. | As I said earlier, our team is in half a dozen cities up and down the country. This map shows where they are. Twitter accounts are as follows: Scotland @libby_brooks; Liverpool @zoesqwilliams; Manchester @joshhalliday; Stoke @jessicaelgot; Leicester @mskatelyons; Cardiff @stevenmorris20; Southampton @lisaocarroll. And I’m @markriceoxley69 in London. |
| If you are out and about and have any tips on incidents, do get in touch in the comments below. | If you are out and about and have any tips on incidents, do get in touch in the comments below. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 7.48pm GMT | at 7.48pm GMT |
| 7.33pm GMT | 7.33pm GMT |
| 19:33 | 19:33 |
| Friday night live | Friday night live |
| Mark Rice-Oxley | Mark Rice-Oxley |
| Good evening. Welcome to a rather experimental attempt to cover an entire nation’s Friday night out. I’m here for the next six hours with a team of seven Guardian reporters who have fanned out across the UK to find out how Britons like to let their hair down - and the damage they can cause when they do. | Good evening. Welcome to a rather experimental attempt to cover an entire nation’s Friday night out. I’m here for the next six hours with a team of seven Guardian reporters who have fanned out across the UK to find out how Britons like to let their hair down - and the damage they can cause when they do. |
| The Guardian is currently embarking on a major piece of reporting about the state of the NHS, its pressures and successes and the people who work in it. You can read more about it here http://www.theguardian.com/society/series/this-is-the-nhs. In the first week we’ve been in hospitals, GPs surgeries, maternity wards and out with the paramedics. Today we’ve been looking at A&E and in the conversations we’ve had our reporters heard time and again the impact that alcohol has on admissions. | The Guardian is currently embarking on a major piece of reporting about the state of the NHS, its pressures and successes and the people who work in it. You can read more about it here http://www.theguardian.com/society/series/this-is-the-nhs. In the first week we’ve been in hospitals, GPs surgeries, maternity wards and out with the paramedics. Today we’ve been looking at A&E and in the conversations we’ve had our reporters heard time and again the impact that alcohol has on admissions. |
| Every year more than a million people end up in hospital because of booze. That means that up and down the country tonight several hundred people will turn up in A and E the worse for wear. Perhaps that’s not surprising when one considers that by my calculations as many as 5 million pints will be drunk this evening. Other alarming facts about Britain and booze are poured into this single article by my colleagues George Arnett and Delphine Robineau. Sobering stuff. | Every year more than a million people end up in hospital because of booze. That means that up and down the country tonight several hundred people will turn up in A and E the worse for wear. Perhaps that’s not surprising when one considers that by my calculations as many as 5 million pints will be drunk this evening. Other alarming facts about Britain and booze are poured into this single article by my colleagues George Arnett and Delphine Robineau. Sobering stuff. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 7.41pm GMT | at 7.41pm GMT |