Cameron ready to announce booze response

The Prime Minister will today call for solutions to the “scandal” of public drunkenness and alcohol abuse that costs the NHS £2.7bn a year.

On a visit to a hospital in the north east, David Cameron is expected to challenge bars, supermarkets and the drinks industry to help ensure responsible drinking becomes more than “just a slogan” as part of the Government’s new Alcohol Strategy.

Downing Street said there were 200,000 hospital admissions in 2010/11 with alcohol as the primary factor.

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Today’s event comes just days after a Government-commissioned report by experts at the University of Sheffield claimed setting a minimum price per unit of alcohol could save the NHS billions of pounds and cut crime and disorder.

In opposition the Tories were sceptical of the idea, fearing it would punish moderate drinkers.