§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what conveniently available figures over a recent476W convenient period of time he has (a) for excessive consumption of alcohol among service personnel and (b) for alcohol-related courts martial; and if he will set up an internal departmental committee to consider excessive alcohol consumption in Her Majesty's Forces.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonFigures are not maintained for excessive consumption of alcohol among service personnel. Figures for alcohol-related convictions at courts martial for the years 1986, 1987 and 1988 are given in the table. Figures for 1989 are not yet available.
1986 1987 1988 Royal Navy/Royal Marines 112 110 121 Army 136 156 145 Royal Air Force 34 52 54 1 Figures relate to convictions where the charge was directly concerned with drink and exclude cases where the charge was for another offence. An existing tri-service committee on drug abuse prevention is the appropriate departmental committee for considering excessive alcohol consumption in the armed forces.