Maltese citizens are totally unaware of the permitted alcohol levels in blood while driving, a Eurobarometer survey has shown.
No fewer than 96 per cent of Maltese respondents said they do not know the legal alcohol level during driving, by far the highest in the EU. Out of the remaining four per cent, half gave a higher consumption level than that allowed by Maltese law and the rest chose a level lower than the legal limit.
The wide-ranging report, which probes European attitudes to alcohol, concludes that the vast majority of EU citizens consume alcoholic beverages.
Binge drinking continues to be a problem in Ireland, the UK, Finland and Denmark, with the poll, conducted in October and November, finding that almost one in five people between the ages of 15 and 24 reported drinking five or more alcoholic beverages in one session.
The survey does not, however, classify Malta as a nation of drinkers though there are concerns about the rate of binge drinking.
A third of Maltese people said they had abstained from alcohol over the previous 12 months, five per cent higher than the EU average. And, just over half of local respondents (52 per cent), admitted to drinking alcohol in the previous 30 days, below the EU average of 66 per cent. On the other hand, 84 per cent of Danes could not steer away from alcohol in the previous month.
Of the Maltese that did drink, 38 per cent said they consumed alcohol once a week, the second highest in the EU. A total of 14 per cent said they drank alcohol daily, one per cent above the EU average.
A total of four per cent of Maltese citizens said they had consumed five or more drinks on one occasion "several times a week." One in 10 Europeans said they usually have five or more drinks in one sitting.
Increasing alcohol prices would not do much to thwart drinking. Asked if they would buy less alcohol if prices should increase by 25 per cent, only a third of Maltese respondents said they would.
The poll found that 34 per cent of the Irish people questioned said they "usually" binge drink, followed by Finland, where 27 per cent of respondents said they did so. The same study also shows 93 per cent of Maltese agree that alcoholic drink bottles should have health warning labels similar to those on tobacco products, making it the country that most supports such preventive measures. The vast majority of Maltese (88 per cent) agree that selling and serving alcohol to those under 18 should be banned across the EU.
Seventy-six per cent were in favour of a ban on alcohol adverts that target young people and 73 per cent backed lower blood-alcohol level limits for young drivers. More than 90 per cent of Maltese respondents agree with random police checks to catch drunk drivers. More than a fourth of traffic accident deaths on EU roads are caused by drunk-driving.
Sedqa, the anti-alcohol agency, said it was worried about the lack of awareness with regard to the legal alcohol limits, but even more so, about the laissez-faire attitude of drivers who knowingly drive under the influence of alcohol.
When contacted, a spokesman for Sedqa said legal limits should be incorporated as part of the driving test and that candidates should not be given a pass mark if they fail to translate the legal limit into real units of alcohol.
Sedqa had in 2000 recommended, among other things, lowering the blood alcohol content from 0.80 to 0.50 g/l and allowing total police discretion for random breathalyser testing.
The agency says its efforts to curb excessive alcohol consumption needs to be complemented by law enforcement and the collaboration of parents and civic society.
The Eurobarometer survey proves once again that binge drinking is fast becoming a trend in Malta and, therefore, a threat to public health, especially to young people, the Sedqa spokesman said.
These conclusions were also drawn from other studies such as the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs, whereby 25 per cent of the respondents admitted to binge drinking.