New law will also enforce cigarette-style health warnings on drinks to curb binge drinking

LONDON: On Friday night the Envy nightclub in Notting Hill was offering groups of women free bottles of wine as part of the Crazy Sexy Cool Party promotion. This is not unusual. Pubs, bars and night clubs around the world have always discriminated in favour of women. But the British government wants to ban bars offering free alcohol to women in an attempt to curb public drunkenness.

Bars have been the main culprits in offering free drinks and happy hours to women in the hope that it will lure more men into their premises. Blighted with the curse of binge-drinking, the government wants to transform social attitudes towards drinking by breaking the association between alcohol and sexual, financial and social success.

A proposal drafted by the Home Office and the Department of Health marks a much-needed hardening of attitude towards the failure of a voluntary code to cut binge drinking. Hospital admissions linked to excessive drinking have more than doubled in the past 10 years. Past surveys have found that young women are the worst offenders of over-indulgence of alcohol and the related crimes.

The proposed mandatory code of practice includes such rules as cigarette-style health warnings where alcoholic drinks are sold, curb on promotional free wine, whiskey and beer tastings, and a ban on drinking games such as downing a glass in one and drink all you like offers.

Health experts have welcomed the move. They argue that finally the government has acknowledged that hopes that Britain would adopt a civilised culture towards drinking despite the introduction of 24-hour opening of pubs and bars have failed.