The Alcohol Health Alliance (AHA) have released a manifesto to address alcohol harms ahead of the forthcoming snap general election on the 12 December 2019.
Download 'Improving health and wellbeing: our 2019 manifesto' here [pdf]
The manifesto calls on 'the next Government to develop an ambitious alcohol strategy, supporting healthier, happier lives, reducing health inequalities and boosting the economy'.
Key policies set out in the manifesto include:
Tackling the price of alcohol
- Introduce a UK-wide minimum unit price for alcohol
- Increase alcohol excise duty by 2% above inflation every year
Addressing the availability and consumption of alcohol
- Include public health as an additional licensing objective
- Introduce greater powers for local authorities to control when and where alcohol can be sold (for example, by reversing the presumption to approve a new licence)
- Standardise the legal drink-drive limit at the lower rate already introduced in Scotland of 50mg/100ml.
Increasing information and reducing alcohol promotion
- Introduce mandatory health labelling on alcoholic products including the CMOs’ low risk drinking guidelines
- Review and reform the current regulatory system for alcohol marketing and establish an independent regulator
- Restrict marketing practices to reduce children’s exposure
- Adopt the CMOs Expert Advisory Group’s recommendations that the low-risk drinking guidelines be communicated through the inclusion of health warnings on all alcohol advertising, products and sponsorship as well as through government-backed media campaigns.
Supporting at-risk drinkers
- Improve access to treatment
- Establish consultant-led seven-day Alcohol Care Teams in each district hospital, with an Assertive Outreach Treatment team targeting high need, high cost alcohol-related frequent attenders
- Develop an Alcohol Workforce Strategy, including at least 60 addiction psychiatry training posts
- Increase support available to people with co-occurring mental health conditions
The AHA say there is strong evidence behind the recommendations, a claim which would be largely supported by the Public Health England's (PHE) own 2016 evidence review. The manifesto is also largely consistent with an "independent" alcohol strategy released by a coalition of over 70 health organisations from across the UK in 2013.
However, those hoping for adoption of key measures such as MUP in England or duty rises have been disappointed in recent years. Plans for a new alcohol strategy in 2018 appear to have been shelved, despite positive indications emerging from Scotland's MUP in the first year. Wales is expected to follow suit with a 50 pence MUP early next year.
Health groups will no doubt be aware that alcohol policy will not currently feature as a high priority for most MPs or political priorities in the context of Brexit, whilst the evidence cited clearly only plays a limited role in alcohol policy making. Nonetheless, groups will be continuing to make the case for commitments set out in the manifesto, whilst a number of MPs have recently backed similar action following an All Party Parliamentary Alcohol Group (APPG) 2018 charter.
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