"Glassing" Violence Becoming An Expensive Problem In U.K.

The issue of violence in Britain at and around football matches in not a new phenomenon but the increase in the number of incidents over the years is now becoming an expensive issue for the National Health Service there. It is known as "Glassing" and it usually occurs in England in and around sporting matches, bars, and clubs. It is when an individual uses a glass as a weapon and attacks another individual by either throwing it or breaking it first and then using it to cut a victim usually after an argument has ensued about sports or British football.. The result is usually heavy blood loss, permanent scarring, and serious injury. In the U.K. over 87,000 incidents take place now every year. It is now costing The National Health Service over 4 Billion dollars a year to treat these injuries. The cost is becoming so high in fact that the Government is now moving to have all the glassware in British bars and Pubs replaced with glassware that is not breakable such as plastic or even paper cups in an attempt to both reduce the number of these incidents annually and also curb the ever rising costs associated with having to treat such injuries.