Booze culture heaps pressure on city's NHS

4.13.20pm GMT Thu 14th Jan 2010

Britain's booze culture is putting the NHS under more and more pressure

Plymouth is experiencing a big jump in the number of people being admitted to hospital after turning up to accident and emergency with an alcohol-related condition.

The total number of admissions in 2008/09 was 2,265, up 10 per cent in just two years. The rest of Devon fared even worse, with admissions up over a fifth. The South West region saw a 15 per cent rise, whilst England as a whole experienced a jump in admissions of over 70,000 over the same two-year period.

"We are turning into 'Booze Britain ', and we need to see action to stop us sliding even further", said Stuart Bonar , the Liberal Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate for the new seat of Plymouth Moor View.

He continued, "The NHS is going to be challenged in the coming years as budgets tighten and money has to go further. The job of the NHS to deal with that pressure, not just locally here in Plymouth but right across our region and our country, will be made a lot worse if alcohol-related emergencies continue to spiral. It won't just be these people who suffer if that happens, everyone dependent on the NHS will suffer.

"We need to see priority given to identifying early on those people who have a problem with alcohol. They should then get help and, if necessary, treatment quickly.

"Stopping alcohol being sold at pocket-money prices might also help. The Government should certainly look at introducing a minimum price for alcohol. The price would need to be such that it didn't hit the moderate drinker, but high enough to put an end to buying vast quantities of alcohol for little more than pennies.

"Binge drinking is turning many of England's town and city centres into battlefields, with the police fighting to maintain order. I don't want that for Plymouth or anywhere else. We need to see action now to make our city and our country better places."