Cheap alcohol led Britons misbehave abroad

London: Cheap flights, strong economy and easily available cheap alcohol have led Britons to behave badly abroad too.

The mayhem caused by British yobs holidaying abroad, mostly due to binge drinking, has been revealed in a report by the foreign and Commonwealth office.

Called the British Behaviour Abroad Report, the FCO publication covers the period between April 2005 and March 2006.

At least 1,549 Britons were arrested in Spain in 2006, 1,368 in the United States and 330 in Cyprus during this period.

Also, the staggering increase in British stag and hen parties being held in Prague has seen the Czech Republic climb high in the list of countries where Britons need the most consular assistance. The proportion of Britons who lose their passports and are hospitalised in the Czech Republic is very high in comparison with the number of Britons visiting the country.

Spain was the favourite destination for most Britons - 13.8 million of them visited Spain in 2005-06. France came second with 11 million visitors from the UK, followed by Ireland with 4.2 million visitors. However, Spain also had the most British deaths (1,325), the most lost passports (6,078), the most cases of UK visitors being arrested (1,549) and the biggest number of cases needing consular assistance (5,627).

The foreign office said many of the problems experienced by British nationals abroad were avoidable