Drunken incidents on planes or airports have been on the rise in the past two years. The government has now promised to review the way alcohol is sold at airports.
New Aviation Minister Lord Ahmad has announced this with the reassurance that he didn’t intend to “kill merriment” but rather seeks to regulate the times passengers could buy alcohol and tighten the rules barring unruly travelers from boarding an aircraft.
"If you're a young family travelling on a plane you want to go from point A to B - you don't want to be disrupted," Lord Ahmad said.
"I don't think we want to kill merriment altogether, but I think it's important that passengers who board planes are also responsible and have a responsibility to other passengers, and that certainly should be the factor which we bear in mind,” he added.
According to police statistics, hundreds of passengers suspected of being drunk on a plane or at an airport have been arrested in the last two years. At least 442 people were arrested between March 2014 and March 2016.
Lord Ahmad said: “In terms of specific regulations of timings of outlets (which sell alcohol) and how they operate, clearly I want to have a look at that.”
He was appointed aviation minister by Theresa May when she was appointed Prime Minister early July.
This is not the first time airport drunkenness has been brought to the government’s attention. Lord Ahmad’s predecessor, Robert Goodwill revealed that a few airlines had complained to the government about drunken incidents on planes and/or at airports.
In one of the latest incidents, a female passenger punched an EasyJet pilot in the face after she was ordered to leave an aircraft in Manchester in May.
The aviation minister has emphasised on the importance of screening passengers before they board planes.
“I think that it’s important for the safety and security of all passengers that we ensure that regime is actually fit for purpose,” he said.
He added: “I want to certainly look at what more can be done in terms of making aviation a very attractive sector for all, so whether you’re a businessman making travelling arrangements or you’re a family planning a holiday, you can do so ... knowing that once you board the plane it’s going to be an environment in which you’re going to be safe and secure.”
