新西兰英语 327 Alcohol Laws

　　In April, the Law Commission¹ gave the government a report on alcohol problems in New Zealand. The report recommended 152 changes. The government now has decided² to accept 126 of these recommendations³. The main changes affect young people under the age of 20. However, the law will not change until after it goes to a committee for more discussion. After that it goes back to Parliament and there could be more changes. All this will take more than a year.
Here are some of the main changes. Drivers under the age of 20 may not drink any alcohol at all. Young people under the age of 18 can drink alcohol only if parents give their permission. This should stop many teenage parties where parents do not know there is alcohol. Shops which sell alcohol may not sell to anyone under 20. However, 18 year olds can drink in a bar. Mixed drinks called RTDs (Ready To Drink) will have less alcohol in them. RTDs are sold in cans and contain alcohol mixed with soft drinks. They are popular with young women. Shops selling alcohol will have to close at 11pm.
Many people think these changes are not enough. Some people want the drinking age to be raised to 20. The Law Commission recommended an increase in the price of alcohol but the government does not plan to do this. The government will also not change the law about the amount of alcohol a driver can drink. At the moment it is 80mg per 100mls of blood. Many countries allow only 50mg or even less.
Like many western countries, New Zealand has a problem with alcohol. It is not just young people under the age of 20 and the government’s law changes do nothing about older people who drink too much.
Listen to Aug 1st 2010 for more about shops selling alcohol.
Questions
1. What is the drinking age in your country? Do you think it should be 20?
2. Why doesn’t the government increase the tax on alcohol?
3. People who drink and rive can cause road accidents. What other problems can alcohol cause?

1 commission   

n.委托，授权，委员会，拥金，回扣，委任状

参考例句：

• The salesman can get commission on everything he sells.这个售货员能得到所售每件货物的佣金。
• The commission is made up of five people,including two women.委员会由五人组成，其中包括两名妇女。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 recommendations   

n.推荐( recommendation的名词复数 )；推荐信；正式建议；提议

参考例句：

• The board completely disregarded my recommendations. 董事会完全无视我的建议。
• Recommendations from two previous clients helped to establish her credibility. 两位以前的客户的推荐有助于确立她的诚信度。 来自《简明英汉词典》