Call for EU-wide warnings on alcohol

A SCOTTISH MEP is launching a bid to see pregnant women warned of the dangers to their unborn child of drinking alcohol.

SNP MEP Alyn Smith is calling on European Union member states to introduce labels on alcoholic drinks warning of the health risks of drinking in pregnancy.

Voluntary agreements with the alcohol industry in the UK mean many labels already carry warnings.

Smith now wants even wider awareness of the potential problems of drinking during pregnancy through a Europe-wide strategy.

France was the first country in the EU to pass legislation on pregnancy and alcohol labelling in 2006.

Drinking during pregnancy can damage the foetus and increase the risk of miscarriage.

Thousands of children in the UK each year are estimated to be born with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder, potentially leading to physical or mental problems.

"When pregnant mothers consume alcohol so does their baby," Smith said.

"At present there is nothing warning or informing pregnant mothers who may be buying alcohol at a supermarket or drinking in a bar of the lasting dangers. Foetal alcohol syndrome is the biggest cause of non-genetic mental handicap in the western world and the only one that is 100 per cent preventable."

Smith added: "Prevention is better than cure. I have lodged a parliamentary question calling on the Commission to urge member states to follow France's lead and implement a wide variety of initiatives, such as labelling alcohol bottles and introducing warning and fact cards on alcohol aisles in supermarkets."

David Poley, chief executive of the Portman Group, the social responsibility body for UK drinks producers, said:

"We would welcome a European-wide agreement on health information on alcohol labels.

"This would provide greater consistency, and companies would not need to re-label for different European states."