20 September 2016: Commenting on today’s British Social Attitudes Survey report, Attitudes to Alcohol, leading liver doctor and Chair of the Alcohol Health Alliance Professor Sir Ian Gilmore said:
“We welcome the findings published today from the British Social Attitudes Survey that show the British public has a strong appetite for government action to reduce alcohol harm.
“There is clear recognition of the damage caused by cheap alcohol, with more than half of the British public supporting Minimum Unit Pricing for alcohol.
“A minimum unit price for alcohol is the fairest and most targeted way of helping those most at risk of damaging their own health or causing harm to others. Research shows a minimum unit price of 50p would result in almost 1,000 fewer deaths, 30,000 fewer hospital admissions and 50,000 fewer crimes each year.
“It is welcome too that over 77 per cent of the public support lowering the drink-drive limit. England and Wales have one of the most lenient drink-drive limits in Europe, set at 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood. The progress made in drink driving in recent decades has stalled and we have seen no reduction in drink-driving deaths since 2010.
“As drink-driving costs lives, affects road safety and places significant pressure on the emergency services, it is no surprise the public are keen to see a lowering of the drink-drive limit. This is a measure that has the full support of road safety charities, emergency services and motoring associations.”