cost of alcohol to British society is currently estimated at over £25bn per annum.

cost of alcohol to British society is currently estimated at over £25bn per annum. This is not just the health costs, but also costs relating to crime and disorder, including domestic violence and fights and accidents on the streets. Health workers see the personal costs; we see the fractured families, the individual tragedies of wholly preventable death and disability. And we want action, now, to start to address this complex problem.

The government is about to launch its alcohol responsibility deal but the BMA, along with other health organisations, has been unable to sign up. We are so dissatisfied with the deal, and given the government does not seem to accept our concerns, we believe we had no option but to publicly walk away. The World Health Organisation has recognised that alcohol is a major cause of ill-health worldwide and that action on alcohol must fall into three areas: affordability, availability and promotion. The healthcare professionals and charities with special expertise in alcohol share this concern and this understanding of the need for a joined-up approach. This means that, as the health secretary Andrew Lansley keeps saying, every minister must see him or herself as a public health minister and seek out actions they can take to promote health rather than booze.

The sad truth is that many drinkers have no idea how much they are drinking, or the harm it is doing. Still fewer have any idea that alcohol is a poison that kills, as well as causing chronic liver and other organ damage. Drinking at levels that will harm health or lead to premature death occurs in all social classes and all age groups, but the health harms are disproportionately felt by the poorest in our communities. The government must commission more research into attitudes towards alcohol in the UK, make sure school-based and general public education are clear, and consistent and are part of a wider strategy. All alcohol packs – cans and bottles – must by law be labelled with easy to read information about the number of units within them, the safe drinking levels and a warning message about not exceeding these levels.