CHAT ROOM

There really is only one way to reduce the demand for tap water to acceptable levels.

That is to make the alternatives more appealing.

The licence trade have been spoilt for many years. No with the smoking ban and credit crunch, they are getting fewer people through their doors.

Licencees need to try harder, not just to attract more heavy drinkers and make those that come through the doors drink more, but to make their venues more appealing to non-drinkers. Some are approaching salsa promoters, but the tap-water issue raises its ugly head.

Some ideas:

# Imaginative non-alcoholic cocktails
# Isotonic sports drinks
# A wider range of soft-drinks
# Promotions on soft drinks and bottled water

But most of all, they need to stop penalising non-drinkers with excessive pricing. Taxation makes alcoholic beverages more expensive than soft-drinks so why are soft drinks the same price as (or even more expensive than) alcohol?