A study, conducted by The Weinberg Group for the Brewers of Europe, concludes that "EU wide policies with respect to responsible use of alcohol are neither called for nor expected to work" and calls for EU policies on alcohol-related harm to be formulated and implemented taking into account regional, national and local differences in the use and misuse of alcohol.
It also calls for future EU policies to be evidence-based, as without scientific knowledge relating to this issue there is "a major risk of reducing appropriate use [of alcohol] with its associated societal benefits". With this regard, the report underlines that the positive sociological impacts of moderate and responsible alcohol use have not been adequately explored, "particularly such things as impact on social cohesion".
A recent study entitled Alcohol in Europe, conducted by the Institute of Alcohol Studies for the Commission, argues that many aspects of drinking are much more similar across Europe than commonly believed. Especially adolescent binge drinking has increased in most countries in the 1990s. A document on stakeholders views, linked to this study, says that both governmental organisations and non-governmental organisations see industry lobbying as the dominant barrier to effective policy to reduce alcohol-related harm, due to both the prioritisation of economic over health interests and attempts to direct policy towards particular policy measures.
The EU alcohol strategy is set to address, according to the discussion paper on the issue, among others, drink-driving, aiming to a substantial reduction of alcohol-related road fatalities and injuries by the end of the year 2010, and under-age drinking, aiming to reduce high risk drinking among children and adolescents and postponing the age they start to drink.
