Anne Milton, the public health minister, has said that people are not taking health risks from drinking alcohol seriously enough.
She hinted that plans to bring in some kind of pricing regulation for alcohol was still under consideration between the Treasury and the Department of Health. However, she appeared to rule out minimum pricing per unit as this may be seen as illegal under EU law.
Diane Abbot, the shadow health minister, said that minimum pricing had been introduced in Scotland and should also be introduced in England.
The government’s draft proposals on minimum pricing have previously been criticised as the set prices were thought to be too low to have any effect. The final proposals will be published within the next 2-3 months.
Ms Milton also stated that the government would not be revising their recommendations on maximum alcohol consumption. The Royal College of Physicians recently criticised the present recommendations for appearing to sanction daily drinking.
She said that health messages about excessive drinking were not having the same effect as similar warnings about being overweight or smoking tobacco. She also pointed out that just over one fifth of the population still smoke, despite campaigns about the health risks.
The government have already staggered duty on alcohol in an attempt to discourage strong beers from being sold. Instead, manufacturers are beginning to cut the alcohol content in their drinks to make them more affordable. Around 8 out of every 10 drinks manufacturers have pledged to improve the information on their labels.