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27 Dec, 2014

No ban on alcohol for the New Year period – The Nation

Partygoers will be able to buy booze during New Year celebrations as the Alcohol Control Committee has decided to defer its decision on banning the sale of alcohol during this period. The ban was proposed on grounds that alcohol consumption is responsible for hundreds of road deaths during the New Year holidays every year.

“We believe further studies are necessary as we need to take into account diverse opinions in society. Banning alcohol would affect a huge number of people,” Public Health Minister Rajata Rajatanavin said yesterday in his capacity as the chair of the committee.

He denied that the decision was related to Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha’s comment that he had no objection to the sale of alcoholic drinks during the holiday season. Prayut, who also heads the National Council for Peace and Order, made this comment earlier this month in response to questions about the proposal to ban alcohol over the New Year and during the Songkran festival.

Read the rest: No ban on alcohol for the New Year period – The Nation.