Experts back minimum alcohol price and full advertising ban

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) issued new guidance yesterday calling for a crackdown on cheap alcohol.

It stopped short of saying what the minimum price should be, although the Faculty of Public Health and the British Medical Association (BMA) are among those backing a 50p per unit minimum.

Last month, Tesco chief Sir Terry Leahy said he was in favour of a minimum price, adding that binge drinking was one of the most serious issues facing the country.

The coalition Government has said supermarkets and off-licences will be banned from selling alcohol below cost price.

Stores will be blocked from using alcohol as a "loss leader" as Ministers try to cut crime and health problems linked to binge drinking.

Today's guidance for England recommends a raft of measures, including making alcohol less easy to buy.

This could include cutting how much holidaymakers are allowed to bring into the country from abroad and reducing the number of shops selling alcohol as well as the days and hours it can be bought.

Councils should look at how many shops are already selling drink in an area to check if a place is "saturated" before granting new licences.

They must also take into account the potential impact on crime rates, public disorder and alcohol-related deaths.

Shops selling to those who are under age or clearly drunk should face penalties or closure, the guidance said.

Meanwhile, the current advertising rules must be strengthened to minimise young people's exposure to adverts that promote alcohol.

Nice said there was good evidence on the impact of advertising on children, although it was "less clear cut" regarding adults.

Nevertheless, the guidance calls for the Government to consider a complete ban on alcohol advertising to protect high-risk groups.

Introducing a 50p minimum would mean a bottle of wine would cost at least 4.50, a pint of four per cent alcohol beer would cost 1.14 and a 10-pack would cost about 10.

A two-litre bottle of cider would cost a minimum of about 7.50.

Nice's public health director Prof Mike Kelly said such a move would "not penalise" trade drinking or pubs but would tackle the "aggressive promotion of heavily discounted alcohol" in supermarkets.

Other recommendations include patients being asked about their drinking when they register with a GP and in situations where people have a condition that may be linked to, or could be made worse by, drinking.

Prof Kelly said the annual toll of excessive drinking included 500,000 related crimes, 17 million lost working days, 1.2 million violent incidents and just under 15,000 alcohol-related deaths.