Alcohol deaths fall to lowest level since 2019 but remain ‘appallingly high’

Alcohol deaths in Scotland fell to their lowest level since before the pandemic last year, figures show.

But Scotland continues to have the highest rate of alcohol specific deaths of any country in the UK, and people in the most deprived areas are 4.5 times more likely to die as a result of drink than those in the most affluent communities.

The data from National Records of Scotland show there were 1,185 alcohol specific deaths in 2024 – which was down 7% from the previous year, meaning there were 92 fewer deaths.

However Alison Douglas, the chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland, said the number of deaths was still “appallingly high”.

Calling for action from the Scottish Government, she said: “Despite the welcome drop in deaths from alcohol reported today, there is no room for complacency, they still remain appallingly high and more than double the level of 30 years ago.

“Yet action taken so far hasn’t matched the scale of this crisis. The Scottish Government must do better.”

The data shows the number of alcohol specific deaths fell to the lowest total since 2019.

There were 20.9 alcohol specific deaths per 100,000 people in 2024, down from 22.5 per 100,000 in 2023.

Around two-thirds of those who died were male – 801 men died compared to 384 females.

Scotland’s largest local authority, Glasgow City Council, had the highest alcohol specific death rate, the data shows, at 32.9 fatalities per 100,000.

It was one of a number of local authority areas with a higher than average death rate, along with Inverclyde (31.9), West Dunbartonshire (28.7%), and Dundee (28.2).

Scotland continues to have the highest rate of alcohol specific deaths of any country in the UK – with NRS noting “this has been the case for almost all years since the series began in 2001”.

However it said the gap between the countries is narrowing, pointing out: “In 2001, the alcohol specific mortality rate in Scotland was between 2.1 and 2.9 times as high as other UK countries. In 2023, it was between 1.2 and 1.5 times as high.”

For 2023, the most recent year for which comparable figures are available, Scotland had 22.5 alcohol specific deaths per 100,000 people – with only the North East of England having a higher rate.

The rate for the UK as a whole was 15.9 deaths per 100,000, with Wales and Northern Ireland having rates of 17.7 and 18.5 respectively.

Ms Douglas stressed that “not everyone who dies because of alcohol is dependent or addicted, and many don’t see their drinking as a problem”.

Noting that “prolonged heavy drinking can cause serious harm, such as liver disease, without any obvious warning”, she urged the Scottish Government to “show leadership and commit the investment that is desperately needed”.

She added: “To save lives now, we need urgent action to identify alcohol-related liver problems earlier.

“Alcohol Focus Scotland, alongside more than 70 other organisations, is calling for liver scans to be expanded in community settings, giving people the chance to access life-saving treatment before the damage becomes irreversible.”

Conservative drugs and alcohol spokeswoman Annie Wells urged ministers to stop seeing minimum unit pricing (MUP) of alcohol as a “silver bullet” for tackling Scotland’s drink problem.

She said: “With alcohol deaths remaining shamefully and devastatingly high, it’s clear the SNP’s approach is not working.

“Ministers must stop seeing their flagship minimum unit pricing policy as a silver bullet when so many Scots families are tragically losing loved ones to the scourge of alcohol addiction.

“As with drugs, Scotland’s alcohol death rate is among the worst in Europe on the SNP’s watch. As usual, it’s the most deprived communities in the country that are hit the hardest by the nationalists’ incompetence.”

Labour health spokeswoman Dame Jackie Baillie welcomed the fall in deaths, but made clear: “There can be absolutely no room for complacency, with deaths still 14% higher than they were a decade ago, with people in the most deprived parts of Scotland around twice as likely to die as those in the least deprived areas.

“Tackling alcohol specific deaths is not just about spending more money, but spending it effectively – including by ensuring rehab facilities are available for those who need it.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “The equivalent of 22 people a week are dying due to alcohol misuse in Scotland.”

He said the SNP Government “has consistently handed down real-terms cuts to drug and alcohol services”, adding: “At a time when alcohol continues to claim far too many lives, we need joined-up thinking and proper investment to stop this tragedy from wrecking families and communities across Scotland.”

Drug and alcohol policy minister Maree Todd welcomed the fall in deaths, but accepted there is “still a lot of work to be done to save and improve lives”.

She stressed the Scottish Government is working closely with local Alcohol and Drugs Partnerships and others to “provide targeted, person-centred support, backed by record levels of funding of around £160 million this year”.

Speaking during a visit to Glasgow Council on Alcohol, she added: “While we are making progress on tackling the harms caused by alcohol, we cannot become complacent.

“This is a public health priority and we are continuing to channel our energy towards reducing alcohol harm further. There is still a lot of work to be done to save and improve lives.

“Research commended by internationally renowned public health experts has estimated that our world-leading minimum unit pricing policy has saved hundreds of lives and is likely to have averted hundreds of alcohol-attributable hospital admissions.”