UK-Ireland Alcohol Research Network (Acorn)

AcoRN Seminar 2: Alcohol and Policymaking

The UK-Ireland Alcohol Research Network (AcoRN) would like to invite you to its second webinar, which will be held via Zoom on Thursday 10th February from 1pm to 2:30pm. The webinar will be exploring another key research area of the network: Alcohol and policymaking.

This webinar will be facilitated by Dr Frank Houghton, who will be joined by Dr Matthew Lesch, Professor Shona Hilton, Dr Nason Maani, Dr Sheila Gilheany and Elinor Jayne (full details below). The webinar will focus on the alcohol policymaking process from a number of perspectives, examining industry, media and public health influences on this contentious process.

This is an important and timely webinar particularly given the recent implementation of minimum unit pricing in Ireland via the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018. 

Agenda

  • 13:00 – Dr Frank Houghton (Technological University of the Shannon) – Opening remarks and introduction of speakers
  • 13:05 – Dr Matthew Lesch (University of York) – Examining public health and industry influences on the alcohol policymaking process
  • 13:25 – Professor Shona Hilton (University of Glasgow) – Exploring the role of media in framing and influencing alcohol policy
  • 13:45 – Dr Nason Maani (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) – Examining the role of industry in shaping public understanding and the function of corporate social responsibility
  • 14:05 – Panel discussion with main speakers and Dr Sheila Gilheany (Alcohol Action Ireland) and Elinor Jayne (SHAAP)
  • 14:25 – Closing remarks

This event is open to a range of stakeholders, including researchers, public health professionals, policymakers, government officials and civil society groups. We reserve the right to exclude access to those who have a conflict of interest – that is, anyone who has received funding/remuneration from an entity substantially funded by, or substantially related to, the alcohol industry in the past five years.

If you wish to register for this event, please do so through the Eventbrite page: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/acorn-webinar-the-politics-of-alcohol-tickets-255114162327

AcoRN Seminar 1: Alcohol Marketing

The UK-Ireland Alcohol Research Network (AcoRN) would like to invite you to a webinar on Wednesday the 17th  of November from 13:00 to 14:30. The webinar will be exploring one of our key research areas: Alcohol Marketing. 
 
In this webinar – hosted on Zoom – we will be joined by Dr. Pat Kenny, Dr. Nathan Critchlow, Vania Filipova, Dr. Richard Purves, and Eunan McKinney to update on the latest evidence on alcohol marketing in Ireland and discuss implications for the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 and future research needs in Ireland. 

This is an important and timely webinar given that Ireland will have implemented the latest Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 controls on some advertising at sport and some event sponsorship the previous week.

Agenda and presentation titles:

  • 13:00 – Dr. Pat Kenny (Technological University Dublin) – Opening remarks and update on the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018.
  • 13:10 – Dr. Nathan Critchlow (University of Stirling) – Examining changes in alcohol marketing awareness one year after initial implementation and during the COVID-19 pandemic: Findings from online repeat cross-sectional surveys.
  • 13:25 – Vania Filipova (Technological University Dublin) – The impact of health warnings in alcohol ads: Comparing single vs. multiple vs. graphic health warnings.
  • 13:40 – Dr. Richard Purves (University of Stirling) – Examining alcohol marketing during the 2020 Six Nations and implications for the Public Health (Alcohol) Act.
  • 13:55 – Short Break (5 minutes).
  • 14:00 – Panel Discussion with Dr. Pat Kenny, Dr. Nathan Critchlow, Vania Filipova, Dr. Richard Purves, and Eunan McKinney (Alcohol Action Ireland).
  • 14:25 – Closing remarks

This event is for researchers, public health professionals, policymakers, government officials, civil society groups etc. We reserve the right to exclude access to those who have a conflict of interest. A conflict of interest arises if you have received funding/remuneration from an entity substantially funded by, or substantially related to, the alcohol industry in the past 5 years. 

If you wish to register for this event, please do so through the Eventbrite page: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/acorn-webinar-alcohol-marketing-research-and-policy-in-ireland-tickets-193346062277

Study Visit Scholarships

We have secured funding to enable four  researchers to spend a week working with an established alcohol research team to enable them to develop paper or research ideas, funding applications or to gain specific skills or insight. The visit must be aligned to one of AcoRN’S four policy themes; Availability, Price, Marketing or Politics.

The AcoRN Steering Group will assess applications and award the funding as they see fit to best further the objectives of the network.  AcoRN is particularly keen to support several applicants from ROI where there are internationally innovative policy developments and fewer established research groups.  Selection will be based on a competitive process whereby researchers and their proposed hosts make the case for how the visit will progress the aims of the network, the researcher’s development and commit to reporting on their visit in writing. Please visit https://alcoholresearch-uk-irl.net/study-visit-scholarships/ for more information and application guidance.

AcoRN Launch Event

Watch the presentations from our AcoRN launch event by leads Prof. Joe Barry and Prof. Niamh Fitzgerald. Prof. Barry describes the background to the network and our intentions, whilst Prof. Fitzgerald goes through the planned activities of the network and steering group, and how people can get involved.

ACORN Launch Report!

The ACORN network kicked off today with a popular and interactive launch event. Suzanne Costello, CEO of the Public Health Institute of Ireland (itself a cross-border body) chaired the event, which was attended online by more than 60 researchers, policy and community colleagues and other stakeholders. Prof. Joe Barry delivered the first plenary presentation, focused on the background to and structure of the network.

All participants had the opportunity then to attend two of the four breakout sessions, each one focused on an ACORN theme. Colin Angus (University of Sheffield) led the Alcohol Pricing research theme, Prof. Niamh Shortt (University of Edinburgh) led the Alcohol Availability research theme, Dr. Pat Kenny (TU Dublin) led the Alcohol Marketing research theme and Dr. Matt Lesch (University of York) led the alcohol policymaking and politics research theme. Breakouts focused on setting the scene for research on each theme, highlighting the relevant work of ACORN members and lively discussions with those present. The discussions were fed back into the main plenary event by rapporteurs for each theme including Dr. Frank Houghton (Limerick IT), Dr. Nathan Critchlow (University of Stirling), Vania Filipova (TU Dublin) and Dr. Joanna Purdy (Institute of Public Health in Ireland).

In the final session, Prof. Niamh Fitzgerald (Institute for Social Marketing & Health, University of Stirling) presented the next steps for the network.

Sign up to ACORN mailing list & launch

We are delighted to announce that ACORN is now open to interested colleagues to sign up.

You can sign up to the ACORN mailing list, and express interest in applying to become a member of ACORN by completing a single form here. ACORN public events, activities and the ACORN mailing list, will be open to researchers, policy stakeholders and interested colleagues.

Membership of ACORN, and access to internal capacity building activities, will be restricted to researchers interested in building or developing UK-Ireland collaborations on alcohol policy research in one of our four priority themes (price, availability, marketing and politics/policymaking).  ACORN welcomes interest from both early career and established researchers and from diverse academic disciplines.

ACORN reserves the right to exclude participants from activities where a conflict of interest is evident.

Public Health Advocacy and Alcohol Policy: Broader Lessons from the Irish case

Dr. Matthew Lesch, University of York.

The adoption of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act in 2018 marked the first time the Irish government has legislated alcohol as a matter of public health. The legislation is underpinned by four main pillars: (1) minimum unit pricing; (2) the structural separation of alcohol from other products in shops; (3) new restrictions on alcohol advertising and marketing, particularly as relating to children; and (4) new requirements for labelling.

In a recent study published in Addiction, Professor Jim McCambridge and I explore the role of public health advocates in securing the passage of this landmark legislation. Drawing primarily on interviews with key advocates, experts, and public officials, our research identifies three mutually reinforcing tactics that were key to the success of advocates in Ireland in getting the legislation passed.

First, advocates created a broad based advocacy coalition, led by Alcohol Action Ireland and the Alcohol Health Alliance Ireland. The coalition included 62 organisations based in Ireland, representing physicians, public health experts, charities, youth organisations, among others. The coalition’s impressive breadth meant that there was a range of voices unified by an overarching concern: tackling alcohol-related health harms.

Second, advocates made a concerted effort to focus on the content of the policy problem, rather than examining the particular measures included in the legislation. Rather than debating whether minimum unit pricing or structural separation were the best means for reducing alcohol-related harm, advocates focused their messaging on the cost of inaction. Throughout their public health campaign, for example, Alcohol Action Ireland reminded policymakers of the loss of life due to alcohol-related harms.  Liver specialists and psychiatrists drew from their experiences to help the public and politicians better visualize the damage caused by alcohol.

Finally, advocates possessed a keen understanding of how the political system worked in Ireland. Many coalition members had previous experience in politics and public health campaigns, and as a result, advocates knew which levers to pull and when. Using records from Ireland’s lobbying registry, advocates showed the public the magnitude of the alcohol industry’s lobbying campaign, turning the industry’s traditional advantage into a political liability. Advocates were sensitive to the local nature of Irish politics. To put pressure on individual legislators, the coalition engaged with local media, local activists, and travelled across the country to build public support for the legislation in communities throughout Ireland.

Ireland’s experience is potentially instructive for public health campaigners in other contexts. First, to be successful advocates need to focus on building strong and broad-based alliances. Coalition-building can significantly strengthen advocates’ credibility in the eyes of policymakers and the public. Second, issue-framing and message discipline are essential to securing public support. Focusing on the health harms associated with alcohol can make the issue much more relatable to the general public. Finally, medical professionals might be the key secret weapon for public health advocates. Doctors and nurses see the enormous toll that alcohol takes on patients, families and communities. As the current COVID-19 crisis reminds us, these professionals are also trusted by the public. Medical professionals are thus uniquely equipped to explain why a public health approach to alcohol is so necessary.

For more information, please see Lesch and McCambridge (2021) “Coordination, framing and innovation: the political sophistication of public health advocates in Ireland.” Addiction. doi:10.1111/add.15404

New Study: Ireland’s Public Health Alcohol Act – Spatial Issues & Glaring Gaps

Dr. Frank Houghton, Limerick Institute of Technology, founder member of ACORN, summarises his new study for ACORN.

Ireland’s Public Health (Alcohol) Act of 2018 represents a welcome addition to the ongoing struggle to contain Ireland’s problematic relationship with alcohol. However, crucial deficits in this legislation continue to limit its full potential. Most obviously, these include the lack of any indication of a date of commencement for the introduction of a minimum unit price (MUP) for alcohol, and a similar absence in relation to the mandatory introduction of alcohol warnings on such beverages.

Concerns also exist around ‘intoxigenic’ (ie drunkenness inducing) environments in Ireland, given the pervasiveness of alcohol advertising. This issue is particularly important in relation to children and youths. The Act will restrict alcohol advertising at sporting venues and local authority parks, as well as in taxis, trains or buses, or at events targeted at children. These developments are positive. However, a number of other elements in this legislation are inadequate and appear rather perfunctory. For example, although there is now an exclusion zone on alcohol advertising around schools, crèches, and local authority playgrounds, under current legislation this zone is a meagre 200m. This exclusion zone obviously needs to be extended to at least 400m, and ideally to at least 500m.

The current legislation also involves exemptions to this exclusion zone for licensed premises and alcohol manufacturers and wholesalers. However, these exemptions are both inappropriate and unnecessary and serve only to perpetuate the pervasiveness of alcohol in Irish streetscapes. Finally, although the current list of premises with advertising exclusion zones is an important start, it is equally clear that many more locations should equally be afforded such protected zones. Obvious examples include health, medical and social care work facilities, as well both civic (eg.libraries & community centres) and entertainment venues routinely visited by children (eg. cinemas, theatres, zoos, wildlife parks, and swimming pools).

For more information see Houghton & McInerney (2020) The Public Health (Alcohol) Act: Spatial issues and glaring gaps. Irish Geography. 53(2). DOI: 10.2014/igj.v53i2.1423 The Public Health (Alcohol) Act: spatial issues and glaring gaps. – Drugs and Alcohol

Welcome to ACORN

The UK and Ireland face common cultural, social, political and economic challenges in reducing harms related to alcohol consumption, yet alcohol research has historically been the domain of clinicians.  ACORN has been funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (UK) and the Irish Research Council to take a social science-led approach to alcohol policy research.

ACORN aims to generate and build capacity for interdisciplinary research into the development, adoption, implementation and evaluation of alcohol policy innovation in Ireland and the UK within four cross-cutting themes: price, availability, marketing and politics. 

ACORN is open to academic researchers in Ireland and the UK with an interest in research in any of our four themes, with the aim of reducing alcohol-related harms. Policy partners will also be welcome to join activities where relevant.

ACORN starts on 1st March 2021, and will host a launch event on 29th April 2021, 1-4pm. Further details, including sign-up, to follow.