HC Deb 21 July 1997 vol 298 c414W
Helen Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost of alcohol abuse to the United Kingdom economy. [9218]

Ms Jowell

The most recent academic study of which we are aware estimated the cost of sickness absence to industry in England and Wales in 1992 as a result of alcohol misuse at £1,059.2 million.(Source: Godfrey, C. and Hardman, G. Changing the Social Costs of Alcohol. Final report to the Alcohol Education and Research Council. York: Centre for Health Economics, 1994.)