Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to tackle alcohol abuse.

The Government is committed to addressing the health harms relating to alcohol abuse and the negative impacts this can have on drinkers themselves, their friends and families, and wider society. In 2016 the United Kingdom Chief Medical Officers (CMOs) published low risk drinking guidelines to provide the public with the most up to date scientific information to help people make informed decisions about their own drinking. These are available at the following link:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/alcohol-consumption-advice-on-low-risk-drinking

The drinking guidelines are included in a range of public health messaging, including Public Health England’s (PHE’s) ‘One You’ campaigns and on the ‘NHS Choices’ website to encourage the public to drink within the CMOs’ guidelines.

Local authorities are responsible for commissioning effective alcohol prevention and treatment services based on an assessment of local need. PHE supports local authorities in this work by providing data, value for money tools, topical briefings, and advice on good practice to help local authorities meet the needs of their local population.

The Government is also developing a new alcohol strategy. Government officials are currently exploring what should be included in the strategy and aim to publish this early next year following discussions with stakeholders. The new strategy will allow us to consider the changing landscape of alcohol use and to target vulnerable people who need support most with effective, evidence-based interventions.

Additionally, £6 million of new Government funding to improve outcomes for children whose parents are dependent on alcohol has been announced. This will include development of an existing helpline and finance for up to eight local authorities to implement innovative, evidence informed interventions for both children and families. Details of the Innovation Fund are available at the following link:

www.gov.uk/government/news/innovation-fund-open-to-help-children-of-dependent-drinkers

Announcements of successful bids will be made in the autumn. This programme is jointly funded by the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and will complement DWP’s Reducing Parental Conflict Programme. Also, as part of this programme we have identified £1 million of funding over the next two years to assist the voluntary sector in building capacity to help us better identify and support children, and tackle conflict within families.