Germany’s drugs czar wants alcohol, tobacco ads restricted

BERLIN (AP) — The German government’s top anti-drugs official has called for tough restrictions on advertising for alcohol, tobacco and sports betting in the country. Burkhard Blienert said Thursday that about 150,000 people die in Germany each year as a result of alcohol and tobacco use, and an estimated one in eight adults has a gambling problem. Calling for “a real paradigm shift,” he said that, in a first step, alcohol advertising should be banned online, in social media, and on television and radio, at least during prime time. Blienert also suggested that rules allowing children to drink alcohol from the age of 14 if their parents are present need to be changed.