Doctors: Happy hours should be banned

As thousands of students prepare for Freshers' week, health professionals are warning that the sale of cheap alcohol and happy hours should be stopped.

The College of Emergency Medicine (CEM) is calling for a health warning on all bottles and cans as well as tighter controls on alcohol advertising.

Experts at the College said experience showed the number of university-goers admitted to A&E rises significantly during Freshers' Week.

They believe happy hours should be banned because they encourage youngsters to drink too much early in the evening.

Dr John Heyworth, president of the CEM, said the College thinks bar staff should be trained not to sell alchol to someone who is already drunk.

He said: "We don't want to stop anyone from having fun, especially not during Freshers' Week which is a time for making friends and social integration."

He continued: "But we also want to reinforce the message that drinking in moderation will prevent a whole host of unwanted consequences, from health impacts to financial implications and the heavy burden on our ambulance services and hard-pressed emergency departments."

Figures published last month by the North West Public Health Observatory showed there were 945,469 admissions to hospital for alcohol-related harm in England in 2008/09.