Tony Goodall wants us to stop and think what our drinking is doing to us.

We should listen to him.

There is a fine line between having a good time on a few drinks and it getting out of control.

Sometimes the most difficult thing is knowing when it's time to stop.

No-one is saying we should all give up booze completely. There is nothing wrong with enjoying a night on the town with a few friends.

But there is a growing problem with young people, in particular, going out seemingly with the sole intention of getting legless.

Alcohol-related hospital admissions are already rising quickly.

Each man in England dying from an alcohol-related cause loses an average of 20 years and each woman loses an average of 15 years.

Alcohol can also ruin relationships with partners, relatives and friends, wreck working lives and cause financial heartache.

Let's hope Tony's campaign persuades those who regularly drink to excess to cut down on their alcohol consumption – before it's too late.



Ray of hope

THE experience of the first patient at the new Yorkshire Cancer Centre shows just how significant an addition it is to our city.

Last Christmas Eve, a hairless Angela Bradbourne arrived at the £220m centre in Leeds.

Eight months later, her hair is growing back and she is in the final stages of her anti-cancer drug treatment programme.

Crucially, 62-year-old Angela can now start looking forward to a future filled with hope.

That's why the YEP is trying to raise £3 million for the new centre.

The money will pay for two hi-tech linear accelerators – machines which reduce side effects by pinpointing cancer and delivering radiotherapy only where it's needed.

They will help make the Leeds facility one of the best-equipped treatment and research centres in the world.

If you can, please help us get to our target.



Holiday blues

IT'S not easy making the most of bank holidays at the moment, is it?

The credit crunch and other factors far beyond our control are playing merry hell with our traditional activities.

Sky-high petrol prices meant many families were forced to leave the car in the drive yesterday rather than travel to the coast.

And this summer's ever-changing weather picture made planning a barbecue a very risky business indeed.

On the bright side, at least it was still a day off work.