Traders cleaning up act on booze and fags (From Bridgwater Mercury)

Traders cleaning up act on booze and fags

1:00pm Sunday 21st December 2008 in News By Phil Hill

THE Home Secretary has praised Somerset’s trading standards for clamping down on alcohol and cigarette sales to underage shoppers.

Test purchases with ‘decoy’ youngsters sent in by the team have shown a marked drop in illegal sales of age-restricted products.

The results since April show 77% of premises checked refused to sell alcohol to under 18s – down around a quarter on last year.

All premises checked complied with the law not to sell cigarettes to under 18s – an 11% improvement.

Test purchases in the fortnight before November 5 showed 95% of shops complied with age restrictions on the sale of fireworks.

In a letter to Somerset County Council leader Cllr Jill Shortland, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said she was “impressed by the passion and commitment” the authority has shown in enforcing the legislation around age-restricted sales.

Cllr Henry Hobhouse, portfolio holder for community safety, said: “Somerset County Council is committed to providing services for a modern society in which under-age sales are a common concern.

“It is encouraging that test purchases show that Somerset businesses are doing their bit to crack down on the under-age sale of products such as alcohol and tobacco.”

Howard Burnett, Somerset’s trading standards team group manager, said: “Test purchases are a great way to make sure all the correct procedures are in place to prevent under-age sales.

“The increase in Somerset businesses refusing to serve the under-age volunteers involved in the programme should reassure local residents that Somerset traders are meeting their responsibilities to enforce product age restrictions.”