This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/health/7518843.stm
The article has changed 12 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 0 | Version 1 |
---|---|
Drinks industry facing tough laws | |
(about 3 hours later) | |
Ministers have told the drinks industry to act more responsibly or face new laws governing alcohol sales. | |
A review of retailers showed many were not following a voluntary code calling on them to display details on units and to encourage sensible drinking. | |
Ministers have responded by launching a consultation on proposed laws covering happy hours, promotion and labelling. | |
It comes as figures suggest the scale of alcohol-related hospital admissionswas much higher than thought. | |
Office for National Statistics data had suggested the figure for hospital admissions was just over 200,000. | Office for National Statistics data had suggested the figure for hospital admissions was just over 200,000. |
But this only covered illness caused directly by alcohol such as liver disease. | |
Department of Health figures for England showed that when deaths from cancer, heart disease and strokes were taken into account the total topped 800,000 a year. | |
Public health minister Dawn Primarolo said the response to the voluntary code - parts of which were introduced in 1998 - was "disappointing". | |
"The evidence clearly makes this the right time to consult on a far tougher approach to the alcohol industry. | |
"Obviously individuals have to take responsibility for their drinking, but others, including the industry, also have a role to play." | |