Public Health England (PHE) has published new data on trends in alcohol consumption and harm since the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. PHE report an increase in total alcohol-specific deaths, driven by an increase in alcoholic liver disease deaths above levels seen pre-pandemic. See PHE press release. Comparing March 2020 and March 2021, there was a 58.6% increase of people reporting that they are drinking at increasing and higher-risk levels (50 units a week for men, 35 units a week for women). As such, surveys and other data has generally identified that despite most people dri ..read more

In this guest post, Dr Samanthika Gallage, an Assistant Professor in Marketing at Nottingham University Business School discusses recent research exploring the experiences of young people seeking to moderate or abstain from alcohol use. In public discourse, moderate drinking is commonly used to describe drinking behaviour that is not regarded as ‘excessive’ or ‘binging’. While the term itself has no clear definition, it is often considered synonymous with terms such as ‘responsible’ or ‘sensible drinking’. Again, whilst not clearly defined or used in public health, the idea of ‘responsible dri ..read more

A message from the Editor concerning Alcohol Policy UK/The Alcohol Academy: Dear readers, Regular followers of Alcohol Policy UK will have been aware that over the last year or so, updates to the blog have been far less frequent. Below I set out to provide an update as to why and offer some background and reflections. Alcohol Policy UK was set up in 2005 to share relevant news and information for those working within, or broadly supporting, alcohol harm reduction. In 2009, the Alcohol Academy was set up as a small social enterprise to support skills development and information sharing via work ..read more

A new report by Dr Thomas Thurnell-Read, Loughborough University, explores pubs as a source of social and community resources:  'Pubs, and their publicans, are a key part of our community infrastructure alongside libraries, cafes, shops and community centres. Given their role we wanted to build our understanding of how pubs can use their place in our social life to tackle loneliness. This research was undertaken prior to the Covid-19 pandemic hitting the UK. With vulnerable people shielding, people losing loved ones, isolation and feelings of loneliness have impacted many more (young and ..read more

The latest Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS) Alcohol Alert: November 2020 includes: Lockdown: home drinking becomes the new normal Reformed duty system would improve MUP’s effectiveness Alcohol prices are ‘small change’ to drinkers, survey finds SHAAP manifesto calls for total ban on alcohol advertising Online event on alcohol policy and nudge theory FASD: Invisible, Not Inconsequential ..read more

Further evidence pointing to the positive impact of minimum unit pricing (MUP) in Scotland has been released via latest figures for alcohol-related deaths. The figures show there were 1,020 alcohol-specific deaths in Scotland in 2019, 10% fewer than in 2018 and the lowest annual total since 2013. The release reports 2019 is the first substantial decrease in recent years, after a period of general increase since 2012. 'Cautious optimism' In a blog for Alcohol Focus Scotland, Colin Angus from the Sheffield Alcohol Research Group explores the data urging cautious optimism given what is still rel ..read more

The Alcohol Health Alliance (AHA) have released a new report again calling for policy measures to be taken to address the availability of cheap alcohol. The AHA say it is possible to drink the low risk weekly guideline of 14 units for just £2.68 – about the price of a cup of coffee in many high street chains. Cider is the cheapest available product in England and is being sold for as little as 19p per unit of alcohol, meaning that consumers can reach the weekly low-risk drinking guideline of 14 units of alcohol for just £2.68. One bottle of the cheapest cider contains more alcohol than eight ..read more

The latest Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS) Alcohol Alert: October 2020 is now available. Reports include:  COVID-19: Latest lockdown measures leave pubs in tiers COVID-19 briefing warns of rising health risks to heavy drinkers Alcohol ban on Scottish trains under consideration Government in call for evidence for review of alcohol duty NoLo beers have small impact on alcohol purchases Minimum unit pricing – the latest from Scotland and Ireland Sobriety tag scheme reaches Wales Heineken fined £2m for breaching Pubs Code ..read more

The Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS) have released a second briefing on alcohol and COVID warning of the hidden harm from alcohol and the need for further attention to the issue from the Government. Download the full 'Alcohol consumption during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK – Second IAS briefing [pdf]' The briefing highlights that whilst there have been a modest overall decline in sales receipts, this masks important differences between lower risk/non-drinkers and heavier drinkers, many of whom report drinking more. Treatment access is also down. As such, important questions relate to how ..read more

A new report from a recent Commission on Alcohol Harm undertaken by the Alcohol Health Alliance (AHA) has been released, calling for a new comprehensive alcohol strategy for England. The Commission received over 140 written submissions of which around 40 were from people with direct lived experience of alcohol harm. Key themes presented include harm to others, society and individuals, and the need for a new strategy given that 'nothing has really changed' since the last national alcohol strategy published in 2012. Recommendations from the final report include: The new alcohol strategy must in ..read more