UK follows experts' advice on increasing the price of alcoholic beverages

The Chancellor announced that alcohol duties will increase. The cider duty is to rise by 10% above inflation from midnight on Sunday. Wine, beer and spirit duties to rise by 2% from midnight on Sunday and further 2% rise planned for two years from 2014.

This coincides with an article in Lancet, published 24th of March, shows that increasing the price level on alcohol are related to health benefit for all groups, and not only the heavy drinkers. The researches from University of Sheffield have found that general price increases were effective for reduction of consumption, health-care costs, and health-related quality of life losses in all population subgroups. They argue that a balance between reduction in health harms and increased consumer spending might be important for proportionality, and one implication of the study is that minimum pricing strategies might help achieve this balance. A general price rise is estimated to reduce consumption and alcohol-related harm, but a minimum price could produce a similar overall consumption effect, while achieving greater reductions in harm and a rebalancing of spending effect away from moderate drinkers towards heavily drinkers. The study also shows that prohibition of large discounts alone has little effect (e.g. buy-one-get-one-free), and when it comes to young adults, specially hazardous drinkers aged 18-24, the policies that raise the price are most effective for harm reduction achievements.

Link to BBC