Start thinking reduce drinking

The Start Thinking Reduce Your Drinking campaign aims to discourage irresponsible drinking and emphasise safety and alcohol awareness over the festive period.

The campaign highlights the force’s commitment to reducing drink driving, alcohol-related violent crime, vulnerability, domestic violence and underage drinking.

Police know that drink-related anti-social behaviour tends to increase over Christmas and the New Year, so the force has implemented initiatives to tackle alcohol-related crime and disorder.

Superintendent and alcohol lead for South Yorkshire Police Shaun Morley said: “We are all for people enjoying themselves over Christmas and New Year and we wish everyone a Merry Christmas.”

“However, there are some people that take these celebrations to an extreme, putting extra pressure on public services.”

Over the coming weeks there will be force-wide activity including drink drive enforcement, test purchasing, fixed penalty notices, as well as work with licensed premises and increased patrols.

Supt Morley continued: “People’s safety is our priority and therefore we are asking members of the public to help us by not putting themselves in any danger.”

“In this campaign we will be working with partners to help combat drink related crime, drink driving and anti-social behaviour. Each area will be conducting different initiatives to tackle such problems and we hope by putting preventative measures in place, disorder will be kept to the bare minimum.”