Scotland's Children's Commissioner Backs Higher Alcohol Taxes to Curb Teenage Binge Drinking

Strategic Insights -

The Children's Commissioner for Scotland has thrown her weight behind calls for increased tax on alcohol as a means of tackling teenage binge drinking. However, Professor Kathleen Marshall warned that such a move would be more effective as part of a comprehensive strategy to address alcohol abuse. Her comments align with a growing consensus among politicians and experts that raising the price of alcohol could encourage people, particularly youngsters, to drink less. The debate was sparked by Westminster Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt, who called on the Chancellor to increase taxes on drinks such as alcopops. Scotland's Health Minister Andy Kerr supported the idea, while a new body, Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems, also backed measures to increase taxation.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Children's Commissioner for Scotland, Professor Kathleen Marshall, supports increasing tax on alcohol as a way to tackle teenage binge drinking.
  • She suggests that such a move should be part of a wider range of measures, including making healthy activities cheaply or freely available for young people.
  • Drinking is often less expensive than taking part in sports, with young people identifying having access to activities such as sports as a top priority in recent consultations.
  • Sixteen thousand children and young people were involved in choosing the Children's Commissioner's office priorities for the next two years, with "Things to Do" coming out top.
  • Campaign group Alcohol Focus Scotland supports increasing taxation on drinks appealing to young people, noting that a bottle of cider containing over 20 units can be bought for around £3.
  • Health Minister Andy Kerr believes "radical" moves are needed to alter Scotland's binge drinking culture, with price being an issue, particularly for low-cost, high-alcohol-by-volume products.
  • Representatives of the licensed trade argue that higher taxes will not help tackle the biggest problem, which is supermarkets selling alcohol cheaply.

Statistics:

  • 220,000 (1 in 30) deaths attributed to excess drinking every year in Scotland.
  • 1 in 4 men and 1 in 10 women in Scotland drink enough to put their health at risk.
  • 25% decline in the market for drinks like alcopops since 2002.
  • Market decline attributed to main consumers no longer being youngsters.
  • £3 price tag for a bottle of cider containing over 20 units.
  • £5.48 duty on a bottle of whisky, potentially increasing to £7.18 with a price hike.

Sources:

  • BBC Scotland, "Children's Commissioner Backs Higher Alcohol Taxes", no date.
  • The Sunday Herald, "Commissioner calls for whisky and spirits duties to be increased to tackle binge drinking", 13/01/2008.
  • Alcohol Focus Scotland, "Taxation on drinks appealing to young people", no date.
  • Scottish Government, "Radical measures needed to tackle binge drinking culture", 10/01/2008.
  • Scottish Licensed Trade Association, "Tax on alcohol will not solve the problem of supermarkets selling cheap booze", no date.