The Licensing Act 2003 for the first time made it an offence to sell alcohol to people under 18 anywhere in England and Wales. Various representations have been made by the alcohol industry, the police, trading standards officers, Members of Parliament and members of the public on concerns they have regarding underage alcohol sales. This issue has also been discussed at ministerial meetings and through an Underage Sales Working Group.
Four Alcohol Misuse Enforcement Campaigns conducted over the past two years have included test purchasing as a tool to establish the progress that the alcohol industry has made in seeking to eliminate alcohol sales to minors. Intelligence-led test purchase campaigns also ensure that those who repeatedly break the law receive the appropriate penalty. Retailers have also been encouraged to ‘Challenge 21’ to prevent alcohol sales to minors, where any young person who appears to be under 21 is asked for a valid form of identification. We have also introduced a new offence under the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 of persistently selling alcohol to children.