Britain too boozy for cafe-style culture

LONDON, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- A Labor Party leader in Britain says new laws to encourage "cafe-style" drinking have failed because Britons are a nation of boozers.

Hazel Blears said recently that unlike their European neighbors, Britons are incapable of leaving the bar after just one drink, The Sunday Times of London reported.

"I don't know whether we'll ever get to be in a European drinking culture, where you go out and have a single glass of wine," she said. "Maybe it's our Anglo-Saxon mentality. We actually enjoy getting drunk."

Ministers had hoped a relaxed approach to licensing hours would lead to more moderate alcohol consumption, the Times reported.

Although Blears says the new licensing laws have not had the catastrophic consequences predicted by those who opposed them, she has concerns about possible grave health issues.