Northern Ireland is following the lead of Scotland and Wales regarding alcohol pricing, as it plans to introduce a minimum unit price, reported by the Northern Ireland Department of Health.
Since alcohol-specific deaths accounted for 2% of all registered deaths in Northern Ireland in 2020, this action aims at curbing high rates of drinking and preventing alcohol-related illness and death.
Furthermore, alcohol-related harm could cost the economy up to £900 million per year, with up to £250 million directly borne by the health sector.
Scotland introduced its scheme in May 2018 and the first evaluations hint at promising results. Northern Ireland’s proposal suggests introducing a 50 pence minimum unit price, following the same direction taken by Wales in March 2020.
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