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Written question asked by Nicholas Brown (Independent (affiliation)) on Wednesday, 6 March 2024, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 13 March 2024 (named day). It was answered by Chris Philp (Conservative) on Wednesday, 13 March 2024 on behalf of the Home Office.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing minimum unit pricing for alcohol; and what other steps he is taking to help reduce alcohol harm.

Answer

The Government continues to watch the impact of MUP in Scotland with interest.

In England and Wales there is an ambitious programme of work in train to tackle alcohol-related harms including significant investment in treatment and recovery services, equipping the police and local authorities with the right powers to take effective actions against alcohol related-crime and harms in the night-time economy.

The Government has delivered on its commitment to review the outdated and complex alcohol duty system and introduced the biggest reform of alcohol duties for 140 years. From 1 August 2023, all alcohol has been taxed by strength, putting public health at the heart of alcohol duty.

This is helping to target problem drinking by taxing products associated with alcohol-related harm at a higher rate of duty. This new system is incentivising the production and consumption of lower strength products by introducing a reduced rate of duty for products of a lower alcohol by volume (ABV).

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
17322
Session
2023-24
Transferred
Yes
Subjects
Alcoholic drinks Misuse Minimum unit prices
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk