Alcohol Deaths On Rise In Britain

With alcohol-related deaths soaring in Britain, critics on Tuesday urged the government to abandon its plan to allow pubs to extend drinking hours until the country shows it can curb its love affair with liquor.

Alcohol was listed as the primary cause in 6,544 deaths — 18 percent more than in 2000, according to statistics released Monday by the Office for National Statistics. In the northern English counties of Yorkshire and Humber, deaths from alcohol rose 46.5 percent.

Some 8 million — or 13 percent — of Britons drink above safe levels, and the amount of alcohol the country is consuming has been growing over the last 50 years, officials said.

"The culture of binge drinking is perhaps out of control and that needs to be addressed before the government pushes ahead" with the licensing changes, said Owen Williams, spokesman for the opposition Liberal Democrat party, which received the latest government statistics Monday after submitting a parliamentary request.

The government has warned the country's habit of overindulging fuels an epidemic of illness, accidents, violence, lost productivity and crime that costs the British economy $36.2 billion dollars a year, officials say.

In a bid to tackle the country's love of lager, the government adopted a new licensing law, which takes effect Nov. 24, that will extend drinking hours. It does away with rules that turned off the taps in British pubs by 11 p.m. Monday through Saturday and by 10:30 p.m. on Sundays.

Supporters of the plan say it will bring an end to the scramble to imbibe as much alcohol as possible in the last minutes before closing time, cutting down on drink-fueled violence. It will also give the pubs' neighbors a stronger voice in deciding which businesses stay open late, and police more powers to deal with problem establishments.

But concerns have been growing, with judges and police warning that extending the hours during which Britons can drink will only add to the problem. The latest statistics about alcohol-related deaths have added to their fears.

"It is ... very worrying and obviously we are deeply concerned about that, but sadly it is not that surprising," said Geethika Jayatilaka, spokeswoman for Alcohol Concern.

She said consumption has grown as alcohol has become cheaper and promotions slicker, aimed at wooing new drinkers such as women with low calorie drinks.

"I'm only 26 — too young to start worrying about liver disease," said Natalie Hastings as she sipped a lunchtime pint of lager at the Hog's Head pub in central London. "I know it's bad for you, but what isn't bad for you these days?"

The main opposition Conservative Party's health spokesman, Andrew Lansley, said in a statement that the jump in alcohol-related deaths suggested a new approach to alcohol consumption was needed and not a "quick fix solution to the problem."

The government, however, is not budging from its commitment to change the licensing law, which it is promoting as a major part of its fight against binge drinking.

"This is part of the solution not part of the problem," said a spokeswoman for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, which is overseeing the changes. Government spokespeople are not allowed to be quoted by name.

Nine out of 10 of the country's approximately 60,000 pubs have applied to extend their opening times. But Neil Williams, spokesman for the British Beer and Pub Association, which represents about half of those bars, said the majority are only asking for an extra couple of hours on the weekends.

He also said pubs shouldn't bear the blame for the increase in alcohol-related deaths, citing statistics that show more than half of all alcohol sold in Britain is now consumed at home.

By Mara D. Bellaby