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Implementing a Public Health Objective for Alcohol Premises Licensing in Scotland: A Qualitative Study of Strategies, Values, and Perceptions of Evidence

Author

Listed:
  • Niamh Fitzgerald

    (Institute for Social Marketing, UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies, Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK)

  • James Nicholls

    (Alcohol Research UK, London SW1H 0HW, UK
    Centre for History in Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London WC1H 9SH, UK)

  • Jo Winterbottom

    (West Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership, Dumbarton G82 3PU, UK)

  • Srinivasa Vittal Katikireddi

    (MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G2 3QB, UK)

Abstract

The public health objective for alcohol premises licensing, established in Scotland in 2005, is unique globally. We explored how public health practitioners engaged with the licensing system following this change, and what helped or hindered their efforts. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 public health actors, audio-recorded, and analysed using an inductive framework approach. Many interviewees viewed the new objective as synonymous with reducing population-level alcohol consumption; however, this view was not always shared by licensing actors, some of whom did not accept public health as a legitimate goal of licensing, or prioritised economic development instead. Some interviewees were surprised that the public health evidence they presented to licensing boards did not result in their hoped-for outcomes; they reported that licensing officials did not always understand or value health data or statistical evidence. While some tried to give “impartial” advice to licensing boards, this was not always easy; others were clear that their role was one of “winning hearts and minds” through relationship-building with licensing actors over time. Notwithstanding the introduction of the public health objective, there remain significant, and political, challenges in orienting local premises licensing boards towards decisions to reduce the availability of alcohol in Scotland.

Suggested Citation

  • Niamh Fitzgerald & James Nicholls & Jo Winterbottom & Srinivasa Vittal Katikireddi, 2017. "Implementing a Public Health Objective for Alcohol Premises Licensing in Scotland: A Qualitative Study of Strategies, Values, and Perceptions of Evidence," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-16, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:14:y:2017:i:3:p:221-:d:91299
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Smith, Katherine Elizabeth, 2007. "Health inequalities in Scotland and England: the contrasting journeys of ideas from research into policy," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 64(7), pages 1438-1449, April.
    2. Kass, N.E., 2001. "An ethics framework for public health," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 91(11), pages 1776-1782.
    3. Jim McCambridge & Ben Hawkins & Chris Holden, 2013. "Industry Use of Evidence to Influence Alcohol Policy: A Case Study of Submissions to the 2008 Scottish Government Consultation," PLOS Medicine, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(4), pages 1-6, April.
    4. Srinivasa Vittal Katikireddi & Shona Hilton & Chris Bonell & Lyndal Bond, 2014. "Understanding the Development of Minimum Unit Pricing of Alcohol in Scotland: A Qualitative Study of the Policy Process," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 9(3), pages 1-10, March.
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