Alcohol deaths ‘national scandal’, says Labour

The number of alcohol deaths remaining at the highest levels since 2008 is a “national scandal”, Scottish Labour has said.

Last year, according to statistics from National Records of Scotland, 1,277 people died, up from 1,276 in 2022.

Public health minister Jenni Minto said the Government was “determined to do all it can” to reduce harm caused by alcohol.

But Scottish Labour public health spokeswoman Carol Mochan said: “Every single one of these deaths is a travesty and the scale of this crisis is a national scandal.

“All alcohol and drug deaths are preventable and the number of lives being cut tragically short shames this SNP government.

“The number of deaths being directly caused by alcohol is just one part of the damage alcohol does in Scotland, with many more lives being ruined.

“This tragedy is a damning indictment of the SNP’s record of failure in government and a reflection of its past cuts to drug and alcohol services.”

Scottish Tory health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said the figure remains “disgracefully high”.

“Behind these heartbreaking figures are 1,277 families across Scotland grieving the loss of a loved one due to alcohol and my thoughts are with them,” he said.

“The level of deaths is utterly horrifying and shameful for an SNP Government who insist they are progressive; it is our most deprived communities that continue to be hit the hardest by their failings.”

Dr Gulhane went on to claim the minimum unit pricing policy implemented by the Government has “monumentally failed”.

“It has been a blunt instrument to tackle a complex problem, with those suffering from alcohol addiction skipping meals to buy more drink, even as SNP ministers hiked prices by 30% during a cost-of-living crisis,” he added.

The Scottish Greens urged the Government to put in place a public health levy on alcohol and tobacco retailers to fund addiction services.

“Minimum unit pricing has been an important step forward, but the money made from it is staying with the supermarkets rather than being used to support people and families who are on the frontline of the crisis,” Scottish Greens health spokeswoman Gillian Mackay said.

“If retailers are profiting from the sale of products that are damaging public health, like alcohol and tobacco, then they should also pay towards mitigating the health and social costs that they cause.”

While Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton stressed the need for “joined up thinking” from ministers to “stop alcohol wrecking lives and communities”.

The gap between the most and least deprived continued to be pronounced, with those in the least well off areas 4.5 times more likely to die than those in the most well off areas, according to the figures.

The age standardised mortality rate for the most deprived area was 47 per 100,000 of the population in 2023, compared to just 10.5 in the least deprived areas.

Men also continued to make up the majority of recorded deaths, with 861 male deaths and 416 female deaths.

Ms Minto said: “My sympathy goes out to all those who have lost a loved one through alcohol. The Scottish Government is determined to do all it can to reduce alcohol-related harm and we continue to treat it as an equal priority with drugs as a public health emergency.

“Research commended by internationally-renowned public health experts estimated that our world-leading Minimum Unit Pricing policy has saved hundreds of lives, likely averted hundreds of alcohol-attributable hospital admissions and contributed to tackling health inequalities.

“The forthcoming price increase to 65p per unit which takes account of inflation, was selected as we seek to continue and increase the positive effects of the policy.”

But Louise Stewart, the director of service delivery at addiction charity WithYou, said the Scottish Government “must pursue alcohol-specific deaths with much greater urgency, determination and innovation”.

Funding raised from minimum unit pricing, Ms Stewart said, should be directed towards support services.

Dr Peter Rice, the chair of Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (Shaap) said the deaths last year “could have been prevented”.

“Scotland’s approach to reducing alcohol harm has had success in reducing alcohol deaths in the past, including with the introduction of minimum unit price in 2018,” he added.

“However, to be successful, policy needs to be sustained and progressive.

“Lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic changed drinking patterns globally leading to an increase in harm, and action needs to be stepped up to reverse this.

“In the face of the ongoing public health emergency that 2023’s deaths represent, we need both the Scottish Government and the UK Government to take urgent action.”

The UK Government must increase alcohol duty by at least 2% more than inflation every year, he added, while a ban on alcohol marketing shelved by the Scottish Government should be resurrected.