The Alcohol Health Alliance UK (AHA) celebrates its tenth
birthday today at a special event in the House of Commons.
Set up in 2007 by Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, then-President of
the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), the AHA brought together
24 alcohol and health organisations, including many of the
Medical Royal Colleges, concerned about rising levels of alcohol
harm across the UK.
The AHA has since grown to a membership of over 50, and is still
hosted at the Royal College of Physicians, in Regents Park,
London.
Over the last decade, AHA members have worked together to
campaign for evidence-based measures to tackle alcohol harm and
reduce the burden of alcohol on the health service. The AHA has
campaigned for measures such as tax increases on the cheapest
drinks, and marketing restrictions to prevent the exposure of
children to alcohol adverts.
Notable steps forward in alcohol policy over the last decade
include the introduction of the alcohol duty escalator in 2008,
before it was scrapped in 2014, and seeing minimum unit pricing
being given the go-ahead in Scotland, following a campaign from
alcohol and health organisations in Scotland supported by the
AHA.
Professor Gilmore has chaired the AHA since its inception.
Reflecting on the past 10 years, he said:
‘We have seen plenty of ups and downs over the past 10 years in
alcohol health policy. During the first few years of the AHA, we
saw the alcohol duty escalator save lives and reduce hospital
admissions, but were later disappointed when the escalator was
scrapped.
‘We also saw the Westminster government commit to introducing
minimum unit pricing, before doing a U-turn and shelving the
policy.
‘However, with minimum unit pricing now going ahead in Scotland,
and likely Wales, and with the Westminster government considering
increasing the duty on high-strength ciders which do a great deal
of harm, there are reasons to be positive about what we will
achieve in the coming years.’
Professor Jane Dacre, President of the Royal College of
Physicians, said:
‘We congratulate the AHA on reaching its tenth year, a testament
to the hard work Alliance members have done over the past decade
and their commitment to securing policy change.
‘We are proud to have set up the AHA and to continue to host the
Alliance and play a leading role in its work. Our members see
first-hand the damage done to health by alcohol, and by working
for evidence-based measures to tackle alcohol harm, we can help
prevent unnecessary death and disease, and ease the burden on our
already overstretched medical workforce.’
Notes to editors
An article, written by Professor Gilmore and AHA policy and
communications officer Matt Chorley, reflecting on the last 10
years of the AHA, and what the next 10 years might bring,
is available in the RCP’s
Commentary magazine.
