Alcohol-related deaths rise

Monday, 15 August 2005 12:00 AM

The number of deaths by alcohol has gone up by almost one fifth in the last four years in England and Wales, figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show.

In some parts of the country, the increase was almost 50 per cent, although London experienced a drop of 4.2 per cent over the same period.

Liberal Democrat MP Lynne Featherstone, who obtained the figures in a parliamentary question, described them as "deeply worrying".

She warned that the government's changes to licensing laws, which will allow pubs to open longer, could merely exacerbate the problem.

"The government must address the underlying reasons why people are drinking themselves literally to death," Ms Featherstone said.

"I am worried that the proposed change to licensing laws will add to this startling increase in drink related deaths. The government should pause for more thought before it brings in the changes to the licensing laws in November."

The new licensing legislation is designed to give local authorities more power over licensing so they can tackle problem pubs and restaurants more effectively.

But critics argue that opening pubs for several hours longer will only make people drink more and increase the problems of drunken behaviour.

Responding to the ONS figures, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health said the government was concerned about the rise in alcohol-related deaths and alcohol abuse as a whole, but was determined to tackle the problem.

The figures show the number of deaths related to conditions such as alcoholic liver disease and alcohol poisoning stood at 6,544 last year - 18.4 per cent more than in 2000.

"We are committed to tackling this issue," the spokeswoman said. "The Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy, published last year, was the first coordinated strategy to tackle alcohol misuse."

According to the ONS, the biggest regional increase in alcohol related deaths was in Yorkshire and Humber, where 46.5 per cent more deaths were recorded last year than in 2000.

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