In the last couple of months, alcohol minimum pricing has been widely, and often fiercely, debated. To add to the discussion, the Faculty of Public Health decided to conduct a survey of its 3,000 public health specialist members to see what they thought.
Out of the 274 Faculty respondents the vast majority (87%) supported the policy of a mandatory minimum price for alcohol.
59% were in favour of raising the alcohol price to 60p per unit. A level of 50p per unit was voted for by 35%, and only 5% thought 40p per unit was sufficient.
Professor Alan Maryon-Davis commented: “There's a lot of evidence showing that cheap drink is fuelling Britain's booze culture and ruining so many lives. We need to set a minimum unit price that's high enough to deter heavy binge drinkers without hitting too hard the much greater number of people who drink sensibly and moderately."
The noughties saw the ban on smoking in public places. Perhaps the next decade will witness the introduction of minimum pricing for alcohol.
