THE POLICE officer who spearheaded Fife’s pioneering scheme targeting licensed premises which sell drink to underagers has received an award for his work.

Chief Inspector Alex Duncan helped introduce the test purchasing of alcohol, which sees 16-year-old volunteers go into pubs, clubs and off-sales to attempt to buy drink.

The initiative was rolled out nationally last week to allow police across Scotland to target premises they believe are selling alcohol to youngsters.

Chief Inspector Duncan received a commendation from Chief Constable Peter Wilson who praised the work done in Fife.

Mr Wilson said, “This award recognises the enormous amount of work Chief Inspector Duncan did to bring alcohol test purchasing to Fife and the leadership skills he showed in making the project happen.

“Where Fife led, the rest of Scotland has now followed and that is testament to Alex Duncan’s commitment to drive the scheme forward.”

Mr Duncan said he felt honoured to receive the Chief Constable’s commendation but added, “ I feel the award should be shared by everyone who works to make the test purchasing scheme a Fife success story, and that includes members of the licensed trade, the young volunteers who work with the police to attempt to buy alcohol, members of the licensing board and my colleagues at Fife police.”

Mary Cuthbert, who chairs the Scottish Government’s Age-restricted Products Enforcement Working Group, worked closely with Mr Duncan as test purchasing of alcohol went through its pilot phase in Fife.

She said, “ I recognise, of course, that the successful delivery of the pilot was a huge team effort within the force.

“However, Chief Inspector Duncan was very much the driving force behind the establishment and implementation of the pilot and deserves recognition for the contribution he has made to shaping alcohol test purchasing policy in Scotland.”