Still the curse of the working classes

“Alcohol is the anaesthesia by which we endure the operation of life.” – George Bernard Shaw (1856 – 1950)

IT’S Ireland’s first official alcohol awareness week. The seven-day series of events and seminars has been organised by the Alcohol Forum.

Their website describes the group as, “a charity working to reduce alcohol-related harms in Ireland, it’s hoped the campaign will raise awareness, challenge thinking and ultimately start a process of re-evaluating Ireland’s harmful drinking culture”. The group advocates a reduction in drinking. It runs seminars, carries out research and advocates on behalf of vulnerable children activities which, most people will agree, are laudable.
What is missing from the website is any acknowledgement of the reasons people are drinking excessively in the first place. Ireland has a historically close relationship with alcohol. It is widely parodied in popular culture and the recent St Patrick’s Day celebrations are viewed internationally as an excuse to drink industrial quantities of liquor and behave in a way that is socially unacceptable on any other day. This historic link between Ireland, Irish people, drink and Irish culture are not a fabrication. The stereotype of the drink-sodden Irish person arose not as a result of social or cultural persecution but because it reflected reality. This new campaign which aims to address “Ireland’s harmful drinking culture” has, unfortunately for them, fallen into the old trap of blaming the substance and ignoring the wider social causes for problem drinking.
Their efforts in highlighting the issues around the social acceptability of heavy or excessive drinking must be acknowledged as worthy but the focus is far too narrow. The economic meltdown has visited great suffering on Irish people. Daily life is now a genuine struggle for many and the threat of destitution haunts many households. A forthcoming report, commissioned by Minister Joan Burton, will highlight the impact of mortgage difficulty on people’s mental health. The report will feature testimony from GPs who are seeing the effect of mortgage arrears on their patients. But of course, mortgage difficulties are only one aspect of the financial pain being faced by people. When every day is characterised by stress and anxiety around money, the effect on a person’s mental health can be marked. Stress of this kind can lead to relationship problems and family break-up. All these factors considered, is it any wonder that people are reaching for a bottle? I am not in any way seeking to justify the fact that this happens but it is an aspect of the moral panic around Ireland’s relationship with alcohol, which gets very little coverage.
On the issue of culture which is often cited as the major reason for high levels of consumption, Ireland’s is not that different from Britain. There, people also drink when they are celebrating as well as when they are sad. Alcohol is served at most social functions and the pub is the centre of most communities. 
The list of speakers who will address the Alcohol Forum’s conference is impressive and the topics they will address are worthy in and of themselves. Again, however, the scope of what they will discuss is extremely narrow. The negative effects of overconsumption are well known and yet people continue to drink. It would have been nice to see some discussion at the conference around social exclusion and how it relates to alcohol abuse. There has been extensive research carried by the Equality Trust which shows that drug and alcohol misuse are more prevalent in unequal societies. Given that inequality would appear to be skyrocketing in Ireland in recent years, it is perhaps surprising that alcohol abuse is not more common.
Government strategy in relation to alcohol also tends to focus on the cultural aspect of over consumption. This is most probably because no government in their right mind will admit to themselves or the voting public that the social conditions they have created and maintain could be partially to blame for people turning to the bottle more frequently.
In 2011, the Mental Health Commission reported, “The number of people suffering from mental health difficulties is increasing as a result of the recession”. It goes on to state, “Chronic exposure to poverty increases adolescents’ risks for disorders such as depression, and behavioural risks such as substance use, early sexual activity and criminal activity. The awareness of financial difficulties in their families has also been found to negatively impact adolescents mental health; being associated with depression in adolescent girls and drinking to the point of intoxication in boys.”   
This would indicate that despite bringing about cultural change with regard to alcohol, the country will still be facing a problem in the future. Further to the effect of poverty problem drinking on the part of parents who are imbibing in order to cope with life will also impact on children. Alcohol Action Ireland states, “Children of problem drinking parents are at increased risk of suffering from a range of psychological and behavioural difficulties including: conduct disorders, depression, withdrawal and social isolation, self-blame, low self-esteem and anxiety-related disorders”.
It would seem that unless steps are taken to address the issue of poverty, exclusion and anxiety caused by financial problems, Ireland’s relationship with alcohol will continue for many years to come. When people are being forced to live the kinds of lives where they seek solace at the bottom of a bottle then the government of the day must ask itself serious questions. Task forces compiling reports are all well and good but when the underlying problems around social inequality, deprivation and economic marginalisation are not addressed, they will have little effect. Added to those in absolute poverty, are those in work but unable to manage in the current climate. They are sometimes referred to as the “squeezed middle” who are increasingly dealing with life pressures, which drive most people to drink. The Alcohol Forum is examining one aspect of a wider problem and such an approach will lead only to more reports. Unless the wider societal context is tackled, people will continue to drink to cope and in some cases forget.