Is anybody out there listening? Our kids are in desperate need of HELP. They don't need to be fed wine at age 5, they don't need to be allowed to gamble at age 10 and they certainly don't need the government giving their parents heroin to take in the home so the kids have direct access to it. What's wrong with people in Scotland!!!!!

What... is there nothing else to say? How ironic that no one is commenting on this article as yet. Has it all been said in other blogs this week... Our poor kids don't stand a chance if we as their parents don't do something about all this nonsense.

Kids, and parents, need a kick-up-the-backside, and those in power should be allowed to use the power and not to have to walk on rice paper.
Until respect for authority is reinstilled society will continue to spiral downwards.
Children have always done what they are not supposed too. I used to get a slap over the head when I did. It is the nature of children, to push the envelope and see what they can get away with.

Richard, remember the do gooders out there have put a stop to chastising kids the way you and I was, and hey you know what I came out ok as did other people my age. I want to know where the kids are getting the alchohol and drugs? Are they getting too much pocket money? What are the parents doing?

Kids are damaging themselves through substance abuse and people talk of discipline? What has discipline got to do with a child feeling the need to do these things?

Certainly a level of poor parenting is at least partially responsible, in that the kids get a hold of the stuff but parenting is not restricted to discipline.

I've long thought that a way to curb underage drinking in Britain, and eventually British drunk yob culture, is a different attitude to drink.

To think of it solely as an adult thing, as something forbidden to children drives them to drink secretly, and to experiment. This is where the danger, the abuse and the detriment to society lies.

If children are given alcohol, in moderation as a normal part of life (which is legal in private at the consent of parents from around age 5) in the same way that it is for responsible adults (a proportional amount of course) the mystery, the cool factor and the thing to do to rebel are lost. These children will grow up drinking largely responsibly because appropriate context has been set and because the attractiveness of abusing the alcohol will lessened.

And there are still some adult morons around who think that smoking grass is cool ...

My parents allowed us small glasses of wine and beer at family celebrations from an early age - a good route to go in my opinion.

Im no doctor , but Alchoholism is genetic. No way should kids of Alcoholic parents be given alchohol.

Mari, that sort of knee-jerk isn't helpful. Just because alcoholism may appear hereditary that doesn’t necessarily make it genetic. A lot of behaviour is learned through being picked up from parents. An alcoholic parent may well be more likely to have alcoholic offspring but this is more likely to be more a result of their actions rather than a genetic addictive personality. I won't say this is definitely not a factor though as I don't have the credentials to do so.

In such cases a grounding in responsible use of alcohol while being brought up may well be advantageous.

Check what the world health organisation has to say about it.

Which is? If you are using a reference a URL would be nice.

Basically the genetic connection is real and accepted. Sorry , I just thought Chris Morris had invaded the Scotsman website, have a look at the new under 10 year story above.

Under 10's responsible for 9/11.

I'm not saying that there is no genetic connection, more that it is probably not the only factor.

Besides kids who are the children of alcoholics are exception rather than the rule

When I see children as young as 6 and 7 years wandering the streets after 10pm at night I have to wonder what on earth their parents are thinking about. This is commonplace where I live and it no doubt contributes to youngsters getting their hands on things they shouldn't.
I'm not in favour of slapping kids around the head. If that's all it took then children from violent homes would be model citizens. But I am in favour of parents knowing where their children are, who they are with and what they are up to. Letting them wander the streets until all hours, with no thought as to what they could be doing...to me that is neglect.

While I applaud the agencies recognising these children at an early stage and I recognise the excellent job these people do, surely more can be done to prevent such tragic incidents.

I think more needs to be done in schools to educate children about the effects of drink and drugs. I don't mean scare them away from them but educate them so that they can make a responsible decision.

In addition kids nowadays have little else to do except stand about street corners taking drugs & alcohol. More money needs to be invested in youth schemes, outreach projects and youth workers.

Kirsten, These schemes were never required in the past. Kids made fun with whatever there was. The problem isn't lack of facilities, it's the mentality of the youth.

Education, of course, is always a good thing but don't rely on it. Sex education in Scotland at the moment is exceptional in terms of science and social impact and regard of personal factors. It is immensely informative and not at all indoctrinating. We still have Europe’s highest rate of teenage pregnancy. No amount of good education will help if kids simply don't care.

The issue runs deeper and is harder to solve than providing amusement and education I fear.