Home / Health / Wales Raises Minimum Alcohol Pricing, Pressures England to Act
Wales Raises Minimum Alcohol Pricing, Pressures England to Act
6 Aug
Summary
- Wales to increase minimum alcohol price from 50p to 65p
- Experts urge England to introduce minimum unit pricing for alcohol
- Calls for tougher regulations on alcohol sales and marketing
In a move to tackle the ongoing alcohol health crisis, the Welsh government has announced plans to increase the minimum unit price (MUP) for alcohol from 50p to 65p. This policy, which sets the lowest price an alcoholic drink can be sold for, has already been introduced in Scotland and is now set to continue in Wales beyond March 2026.
According to officials, the proposed change could reduce the number of harmful drinkers in Wales by nearly 5,000 people. However, the push for tougher alcohol regulations is not limited to Wales. Leading health experts from across the UK have now urged the English government to follow suit and introduce a MUP for alcohol.
In a letter to the Health Secretary, a coalition of 34 health organizations, including the Royal Colleges and the Alcohol Health Alliance, have called for a series of ambitious measures. These include not only the implementation of MUP in England but also giving local authorities more power to regulate alcohol sales and deliveries, aligning advertising rules with those for unhealthy foods, and increasing funding for local alcohol care teams.
The experts argue that the public "want and deserve action" to tackle the scale of alcohol-related harm, which they say the government's current plans do not adequately address. With the UK's 10-Year Health Plan underway, the pressure is on for policymakers to take meaningful and coordinated steps to curb the nation's alcohol crisis.
