Warning Over 'Hazardous' Drinking In Military

Excessive drinking is the “norm” among the armed forces and urgent action is needed to tackle “hazardous” levels of alcohol consumption, MPs have warned.

The Commons Defence Committee said it led to domestic abuse, violence and mental health issues.

It called on the Ministry of Defence to develop a “comprehensive strategy” to reduce misuse and challenge the drinking culture – including a review of alcohol pricing and availability on military bases.

“Hazardous levels of alcohol consumption are the norm in the armed forces, regardless of service or gender,” the committee said.

“Urgent action is needed to reduce the harm caused by the abuse of alcohol to armed forces personnel and their families.

“Too many members of the armed forces appear to believe that alcohol is integral to group cohesion or believe that alcohol is an appropriate way of coping with a return from a military deployment.”

While the committee recognised that the MoD was aware of the seriousness of the issue, it said the measures taken so far had not had a “noticeable impact” on levels of drinking, with damaging consequences for personnel and their families.

Criminal offending rates among personnel are lower than for the general population, but the committee said the rate for violent incidents was “substantially higher”, and often linked to drinking following deployment on combat operations.

“The MoD needs to understand better the links between deployment on combat operations, alcohol misuse and domestic violence,” the committee said.

“The MoD must be more proactive at all levels and should re-examine its policies on domestic violence and develop plans to intervene to prevent domestic violence or, at least, reduce the incidence of domestic violence by armed forces personnel.”

Another issue highlighted by the committee was mental health.

While the incidence of mental health problems among service personnel is comparable to the general population, those deployed in combat roles suffered twice the normal rate of post-traumatic stress.

The problem was particularly marked among reservists, the committee found, who exhibit double the rates of post-traumatic stress than those found among regulars.

The MoD has so far failed to identify the cause of the problem or come up with a solution, the committee said.

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Warning Over 'Hazardous' Drinking In Military