Response to Cardiff University study on the price of food influencing alcohol sales

Matt Lambert, CEO of the Portman Group, the social responsibility and regulatory body for alcohol in the UK, commented:

“This study shows us what we already know, that UK consumers are price-conscious, and spend to a budget when buying their shopping. This should not be used by the authors as a basis to advocate extreme measures which punish the moderate majority of UK drinkers, especially less well-off consumers, at a time when the UK overall is drinking less and many alcohol harms are falling. We believe that targeted measures which help those who drink to harmful levels are a more effective solution.”

Response to the ONS data on alcohol-specific deaths in England and Wales

Matt Lambert, CEO of the Portman Group, the social responsibility and regulatory body for alcohol in the UK, responds to the ONS statistics on alcohol specific deaths:

“The data around the levels of harmful drinking within the UK are complex, particularly during the COVID-19 lockdowns. The majority of people in the UK continue to drink responsibly, with four in five drinking within the government lower-risk guidelines of 14 units per week or not at all and recent reports highlight that the majority of people continued to drink responsibly during lockdown.

“We need to see more targeted measures which address unsafe levels of drinking and support those who are vulnerable to access the right treatment and support, particularly during lockdown.”