Alcohol Policy UK

Guidance and anticipation as Scotland gears up for minimum pricing

On Tuesday 1st May 2018, Scotland's long running bid for minimum unit pricing (MUP) will finally come into action, preventing the sale of alcohol at less than 50 pence per unit.

The Scottish Government recently issued guidance on the implementation of MUP [pdf], outlining information and FAQs on the calculation, implementation, and enforcement of minimum pricing - also at www.minimumunitpricing.scot.

MUP will be enacted as a mandatory condition applying to all licensed premises in Scotland, with local Licensing Standards Officers (LSOs) responsible for licensing adherence, and there will be 'no period of grace allowed'. The guidance states licensed premises are likely to be contacted by LSO which may include inspection visits for which 'the LSO will expect to see clear pricing information for every alcoholic product offered for sale'.

Alcohol and mental health support still falling short

A new report from the Institute of Alcohol Studies and the Centre for Mental Health warns people with co-occuring alcohol and mental health problems are still receiving inadequate care. It finds substance and mental health services are still too often failing to work together and there is still insufficient national policy recognition.

Download Alcohol and Mental Health: Policy and practice in England [pdf]

The report, based on a survey and seminar session held with professionals, finds co-morbidity is a barrier to treatment, and support for people with co-occurring alcohol and mental health problems is too often poor and fragmented. Support for homeless people with complex needs is particularly poor, with more than half of survey respondents suggesting they receive worse than average access to services (61%) and 46% suggesting they receive a worse than average standard of service.

Funding for children of alcohol dependent parents: tackling the stigma of 'alcoholism'?

The Department of Health and Social Care has announced further details on Government support for the children of alcohol-dependent parents. The funding follows a pledge earlier this year by the Health Secretary and campaigning by several MPs including a parliamentary group and a Manifesto for 'Children of Alcoholics'. 

The Government release say £6 million will be available to support a package of measures including £4.5 million for an 'innovation fund for local authorities to develop plans that improve outcomes for children of alcohol-dependent parents'. £1 million will go to fund national capacity building by non-governmental organisations whilst '£500,000 to expand national helplines for children with alcoholic parents' which had been previously pledged.

Events & dates 2018: families, alcohol & recovery, UKCTAS & more

Forthcoming alcohol conference and events in 2018:

Drugs, Alcohol, Women and Families Conference (DAWF)

On 23 & 24 May 2018, a Drugs, Alcohol, Women and Families Conference (DAWF) takes place at the  Manchester Metropolitan University. Sponsored by The Society for the Study of Addiction (SSA), the event will focus on women, families and young people affected by substance use and with a conference theme of 'putting research into practice'. Confirmed panel themes include: pregnancy, women and agency, trauma and domestic abuse, young people, and international policy.

More information can be found on www.dawfconference.com.

'Alcohol & Recovery': NDSAG 2018 conference and PhD symposium

'Massive' study supports unit guidelines - where next for consumer messaging?

A new study on alcohol consumption risk levels based on almost 600,000 drinkers has been published in the Lancet, reporting the risk of early death from drinking begins to rise at a level above 100g of alcohol per week (12.5 units).

The findings, which cover 19 countries, can be seen to add weight to the Chief Medical Officer's recommended guideline of not regularly drinking more than 14 units per week, revised in 2016 and since subject to ongoing debate. The issue for many in the alcohol field though remains how best to communicate drinking guidelines and associated risks. Whilst most ultimately support the goal of informed decision making, the real world complexity of alcohol harms and how drinkers take note of - or indeed dismiss - alcohol-related messages leaves many ongoing questions over how to make use of such evidence.

Findings bulletins: PHE 'control policies' review, 12 step recovery effectiveness, computerised interventions and self-help

Recent bulletins from the Findings drug and alcohol bank:

Alcohol control policies from an English perspective

An ambitious attempt to use research to understand the most effective and cost-effective set of policies for reducing alcohol-related harm in the English context, from taxation and price regulation to managing the drinking environment.

Is the worldwide popularity of the ‘12 steps’ matched by evidence of effectiveness?

The deficit in UK recovery resources combined with heightened profile of abstinence-based recovery form the backdrop to this hot topic on 12-step mutual aid fellowships such as Alcoholics Anonymous. To the extent that there is evidence of their effectiveness, can this be attributed to the more distinct components of the 12 steps, or established mechanisms of behaviour change?

Sales to 'drunks' - tackling a culture of intoxication?

A research evaluation has been published in the journal Addiction assessing the impact of the 'Drink Less Enjoy More' project that aimed to increase adherence to the law prohibiting sales to intoxicated persons in Liverpool.

Although findings from the project have previously been reported - indicating that the combination of awareness raising, bar server training and enforcement appeared to significantly reduce sales to drunks - the evaluation may be seen as significant given addressing alcohol-related disorder appears central to national alcohol policy in England and Wales.

News & updates March 2018: MUP Scotland and Wales, cuts, older people, beer affordability & more

Selected media stories since the February roundup:

Writing in the Scotsman, Alcohol Focus Scotland Chief Executive Alison Douglas, said "The historic introduction of Minimum Unit ­Pricing (MUP) of ­alcohol is just weeks away and will mark a significant turning point in ­Scotland’s damaging relationship with drink. When this life-saving ­policy comes into effect on May 1, the positive impact on the nation’s health will be felt in a matter of months. In the first year alone, minimum pricing could prevent 60 ­alcohol-related deaths, 1,300 hospital admissions and 3,500 crimes, and those health and ­other benefits will build over time.". See APUK's MUP and UK policy analysis here.

IAS Alert March 2018: labelling, wine politics, Welsh MUP, women and alcohol & more

The latest Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS) Alcohol Alert: March 2018 is now available (here for PDF version). Read the editorial here and articles below:

• TOP STORY – Off-label solutions strike a sour note
• Health Secretary promises minister for children of alcoholics
• Macron angers doctors with wine claims
• Alcohol at local Labour Party meetings 'excludes women'
• Europe's billion-euro wine spillage
• Experts: 'We need a strategy for older drinkers'
• MPs call for 'clarity' on low/no alcohol labelling
• Welsh MUP moves a step closer
• Government seeks guidance on describing low ABV drinks
• Alcohol industry donated to federal agency study
• Alcohol availability hits poorest hardest
• Stereotypes about women’s drinking 'unfair and unhelpful'
• Charity calculates cases of avoidable alcohol-related cancer
• ALCOHOL SNAPSHOT: Drink drive figures – have we hit a dead end?

Digital interventions for reducing alcohol consumption: do they work and if so, how and why?

In this guest post, Dr Claire Garnett, a Research Associate in UCL’s Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group, discusses the findings from a recent systematic review of digital interventions for alcohol reduction.

Digital interventions are those delivered via computer technology, which includes smartphone apps, websites, computer programs, wearable devices, and telecommunications, that aim to promote behaviour change. Digital interventions for alcohol reduction have a number of advantages over the traditional face-to-face brief interventions such as: having a low cost per user, greater reach, can avoid the stigma associated with receiving help in person and are highly convenient in that they can be used as and when the individual wants. However, there is little evidence as to whether digital interventions are effective at reducing alcohol consumption.