Police back call for alcohol tax

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Police chiefs have backed calls by Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt to increase tax on alcohol in an effort to address binge drinking by young people.

The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) suggested the revenue raised could tackle problems associated with excessive drinking.

Ms Hewitt had urged Chancellor Gordon Brown to "really increase" taxes on drinks such as alcopops.

The Treasury has not directly commented but is thought to be opposed to it.

A spokeswoman for ACPO welcomed Ms Hewitt's comments and said the money could be used by forces across the country.

"We would like to see the revenue from taxation ploughed back into those agencies, such as the police, who put huge resources into fighting the problems associated with drinking to excess, from anti-social behaviour to domestic violence," she said.

This is a veiled admission of failure from a minister who has failed miserably to tackle the problem of alcohol abuse Liberal Democrat health spokesman Steve Webb Send us your comments

She told children's paper First News it would stop teenagers spending money on drink and ending up in casualty.

Ms Hewitt said: "We've got enormous numbers of young people, particularly on a Friday and Saturday night, ending up in the casualty department of hospitals because they're drunk."

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Steve Webb said Ms Hewitt's proposal was a sign she had accepted defeat in tackling binge drinking.

"This is a veiled admission of failure from a minister who has failed miserably to tackle the problem of alcohol abuse."

He said consideration should be given to raising tax on damaging high-alcohol drinks, such as super-strength lagers, while lowering the duty on less harmful drinks.

BINGE DRINKING FACTS The Office for National Statistics defines "heavy" drinking as eight or more units for men and six or more for women About 23% of men and 9% of women binge drink in the UK Binge drinking among young British women has increased more than in any other EU country in the last decade UK death rates due to binge drinking have doubled in the last 20 years Statistics from the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology

The Treasury said Mr Brown routinely considered a "wide range" of suggestions on tax ahead of the Budget.

The chancellor previously raised tax on alcopops in 2002 to put them into the same tax bracket as spirits.

It was reported that Treasury officials see tax as "too blunt an instrument" to tackle young people's drinking habits.

The Office for National Statistics defines binge drinking as consuming eight or more units for men and six or more for women on a single occasion.

About 23% of men and 9% of women binge drink in the UK but it is predominantly a problem among 16 to 24-year-olds, official figures show.