§ Lord Aveburyasked Her Majesty's Government:
What measures they will take during the current Session of Parliament to reduce the harm caused by alcohol consumption, which has been estimated at £20 billion. [HL63]
§ Lord WarnerOn 15 March 2004 the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit published the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England, which contains 41 recommendations. Each recommendation includes a date for completion. The Home Office and the Department of Health in partnership with other stakeholders are working together to deliver those recommendations in the strategy.
In addition, the White Paper Choosing Health published on 16 November 2004 highlighted that the Government will build on commitments within the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England through:
- Guidance and training to ensure all health professionals are able to identify alcohol problems early;
- Piloting approaches to targeted screening and brief interventions in both primary care and hospital settings including accident and emergency departments;
- Similar initiatives in criminal justice settings with the aim of reducing repeat offending;
- Developing a programme for improvement for alcohol treatment services based on the findings of an audit of demand for and provision of alcohol treatment in England and the Models of Care framework for alcohol treatment.