Should We Focus More on Alcohol than Drugs?

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you will know about the media’s recent focus on the ‘ice epidemic’, with the government responding by announcing a multi-million dollar campaign aimed at raising public awareness about the destructive impacts of the drug.

‘Ice’, or crystal methamphetamine, has been linked to a rise in domestic and family violence, as well as property offences like robbery and theft by users desperate to fund their drug habits. But experts are concerned that the focus on ‘ice’ is diverting attention away from other dangerous drugs, including alcohol.

The Dangers of Alcohol

As a nation of drinkers, Aussies love nothing more than to kick back and have a few cold ones with mates. And having a few drinks doesn’t normally hurt anybody.

But as Sandra Jones, Director of the Centre for Health and Social Research at the Australian Catholic University notes, the over-consumption of alcohol can have tragic consequences.

Homicide

For instance, 47% of all homicide cases in Australia between 2000 and 2006 were alcohol-related – meaning that either the offender or deceased had consumed alcohol at some point prior to the incident. In 60% of those cases, only the offender was acting under the influence of alcohol.

Domestic Violence

In 2011, there were 29,684 reported incidents of alcohol-related domestic violence in NSW, Victoria, Western Australia and the Northern Territory. A recent study found that alcohol is a factor in a whopping 50.3% of all domestic violence cases.

Accessibility

Alcohol is especially dangerous because it is so easily accessible, even for young people.

In 2013, four out of five Australians aged 14 or older reported consuming alcohol in the past year, with 6.5% saying that they drank on a daily basis. And around 20% of Aussies aged 14 or older who drank regularly reported putting themselves or others at risk or harm while drinking in the past 12 months – often by driving.

Other incidents

More than a quarter of Australians reported being involved in some kind of alcohol-related incident in 2013, with most situations involving verbal abuse. Another 8.7% reported experiencing physical abuse by someone under the influence of alcohol.

Alcohol-related crime accounted for around 23% of police incidents. But the vast majority of cases were likely to be summary offences such as offensive language and conduct – although drink driving offences were also common.

Financial cost

The effects of alcohol abuse come at a high cost to the taxpayer, with $2.958 billion spent on the criminal justice system alone in 2010. 38% of this money was spent on police and law enforcement personnel, while a further 21% was spent imprisoning people for alcohol-related crime.

There are also indirect costs associated with imprisoning people for alcohol-related crime, including the ‘cost of loss of productivity to society from the incarcerated individual no longer being part of the workforce while in prison.’

Health Concerns

Alcohol abuse is also the cause of many health problems, including liver failure, cardiovascular disease and cancer. Unsurprisingly, alcohol-related health problems come at a high cost to the health system, costing $1.686 billion in 2010 alone.

And this figure does not account for the cost borne by not-for-profit agencies like the Salvation Army and Mission Australia, who facilitate alcohol support programs within the community.

End Note

It should be emphasised that this information is not intended to downplay the serious issues associated with methamphetamine use.

The fact remains that ice is a far more addictive substance than alcohol – and it is certainly a contributing factor in many incidents of violent crime. But the accessibility of alcohol – and its social acceptance in Australian culture – means that we tend to be more willing to turn a blind eye to alcohol-related problems.