Alcohol Policy UK

Licensing figures 2017: premises called to review - why the decline?

The Home Office recently released 2017 statistics on alcohol and late night refreshment licensing in England and Wales, showing a further small but steady rise in the total number of licensed premises. Reviews of premises potentially causing problems have continued to fall significantly, though the reasons behind this are still unclear.

As of 31 March 2017 there were 211,500 premises licences, a 1% increase of 1,100 compared with 31 March 2016. The Home Office reports this is a 'in line with the broadly increasing trend since 31 March 2008' when 195,800 were recorded.

As of 31 March 2017 there were 211,500 premises licences, a 1% increase of 1,100 compared with 31 March 2016. The Home Office reports this is a 'in line with the broadly increasing trend since 31 March 2008' when 195,800 were recorded.

Wales annonuces Minimum Unit Pricing as Supreme Court prepares Scottish verdict

The Welsh Government has announced plans to see Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) introduced by law as part of a 'comprehensive strategy to tackle harmful and hazardous drinking by tackling the availability and affordability of cheap, strong alcohol'.

The news comes as the long awaited verdict from the UK Supreme Court on Scotland's 2012 legislation is expected imminently. In England, fifty health bodies and other figures including MPs have called on the Government to follow suit and enact UK wide minimum pricing, describing MUP as a 'highly effective tool'.

Drugs for the treatment of alcohol dependence: insufficient evidence?

In this guest post Clare Sharp, a PhD researcher at the University of Stirling, explores the implications of new research on the use of drugs used to support alcohol treatment.

A new review by researchers in France throws doubt on the efficacy of pharmacotherapy for controlled/reduced drinking in dependent drinkers.

Pharmacotherapy is just one of a wide range of possible treatments for alcohol dependence and not recommended for use without adjacent psychological support. Disulfiram, an aversive therapy, which causes nausea/vomiting when combined with alcohol, has been used since the 1940s to treat alcohol problems, in recent times under supervised consumption.

IAS warns over wide scope of parental drinking impact on children

A new Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS) report exploring the effects of drinking amongst non-dependent parents has been released in partnership with the Alcohol and Families Alliance and Alcohol Focus Scotland.

Download “Like sugar for adults: The effect of non-dependent parental drinking on children & families” [pdf]

The report suggests a range of negative impacts from parental drinking can start at even moderate levels, though harms increased in line with consumption. The IAS states the research shows 'parents do not have to regularly drink large amounts of alcohol for their children to notice changes in their behaviour and experience negative impacts'. Seeing a parent tipsy or drunk was associated with children feeling worried as well as experiencing negative impacts such as unpredictable parental behaviour. The Guardian reported the findings stating 'even light drinking can upset children'.

Findings bulletins: brief interventions under the microscope, cycle of change & treatment

Recent bulletins from the Findings drug and alcohol bank:

‘My GP says I drink too much’: screening and brief intervention

In the absence of greater obstacles to availability, widespread screening to identify and then briefly advise risky drinkers has been the great hope for improved alcohol-related public health. This major hot topic update guides you through the studies which exposed questionable effectiveness and patchy implementation, leading to today’s less ambitious plans.

GP-delivered brief interventions an ‘important piece of the alcohol policy jigsaw’

Doctors working in Scotland share their thoughts on what helps and hinders the delivery of brief alcohol interventions in general practice. Stifled by short consultation times and faced by a lack of awareness among patients of what constitutes harmful/hazardous drinking, doctors face numerous challenges to embedding these interventions in routine practice despite or regardless of their enthusiasm.

Drink drive figures: cause for concern in 2017?

Further attention on the national drink driving limit in England and Wales has been prompted by a rise in the number of people seriously injured in drink drive accidents, whilst a recent RAC survey reports most people support a lowering of legal limit.

The statistics from the Department for Transport (DfT) show 1,170 serious injuries in reported drink drive accidents in 2015, up from 1,070 the previous year, which follows reports of a rise in failed road side breath tests in the same year. Whilst drink drive related fatalities fell by 40 to 200, the DfT says only the injury figures had statistical significance with the trend in number of deaths appearing stable since 2010.

'Health Matters': PHE resources on brief intervention CQUIN

Public Health England (PHE) have released a new 'Health Matters: preventing ill health from alcohol and tobacco use' resource calling on practitioners and commissioners to 'play their part' in reducing alcohol harms through Identification and Brief Advice. A case study of an IBA CQUIN in mental health settings in South London also provides insight into local implementation efforts.

In 2016 it was announced mental health and hospital trusts in England would be incentivised to deliver brief interventions for alcohol and smoking as part of the NHS Commissioning for Quality and Innovation (CQUINs). PHE says CQUIN No.9 Preventing Ill Health by Risky Behaviours is 'an important opportunity to improve patient health across England' via the opportunity to 'identify and support inpatients who are increasing or higher risk drinkers and to identify and support inpatients who smoke, and importantly to embed these interventions into routine care for patients.'

News & updates September 2017: Gin trends, stealth drinking, millennials, draft wine, pubs

Selected news and media stories since the August roundup:

A survey by Evenbrite says millennials consume 'just five units' of alcohol each week, reported Mailonline. Some 90 per cent see getting drunk as 'uncool' and a quarter believe it is 'pathetic' and 'embarrassing' when someone has had too much.

Hospital admissions linked to liver damage have doubled in a decade, according to new figures which also show that people from Blackpool are nearly eight times as likely to die from liver disease as those from Norfolk, reported the Telegraph.

Alcohol and sport: is booze ruining the result?

In this guest blog, Andrew Misell of Alcohol Concern Cymru reflects on the recent annual conference, Hitting the bar, which took place at Cardiff City Stadium on 26 September 2017. Alcohol Concern recently merged with Alcohol Research UK.

At the recent Hitting the bar conference the question we addressed was almost as intractable as ‘Will Cardiff City ever make it back to the Premier League?’ – can sport can ever have a healthy relationship with alcohol?

Whether you’re a spectator or a player, celebrating wins or commiserating losses, alcohol probably plays some part in your sporting life. Even if you don’t drink, many of our major sporting events are sponsored by alcohol companies, and grassroots sports clubs are often reliant on alcohol industry funding and alcohol sales at the bar.

IAS Alert September 2017: pubs, holidays, alcohol-free beers, Facebook ads & more

The latest Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS) Alcohol Alert: July 2017 is now available (here for PDF version). Read the editorial here and articles below:

• Pubs call for action on cheap supermarket alcohol
• 28% of adults ‘can’t enjoy holiday without alcohol’
• Most ill heavy drinkers would drink a third less under MUP
• Industry misleading the public about alcohol-related cancer risk
• Women and alcohol: What's next?
• ‘Misleading coverage’ of pregnancy drinking risks from media
• Mixed picture for new liver disease atlas of England
• Europeans gaining taste for alcohol-free beer
• Communication of alcohol guidelines ‘needs to be improved’
• Facebook trial lets users hide alcohol adverts
• Magic pill to cure alcoholism is make believe
• Do “digital interventions” reduce heavy drinking?
• ALCOHOL SNAPSHOT: Public Health England highlight geographical inequalities in the burden of alcohol