The report shows differences in the use of evidence in alcohol-related policy in the four UK jurisdictions, and discusses the reasons underlying this.

Key Findings

• There are substantial differences in the way that alcohol problems and policies are framed in the UK, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The devolved jurisdictions, unlike the UK government, tend to view alcohol issues as a whole population issue.
• Robust evaluations of implemented policies are not routinely conducted, which inhibits contribution to the evidence base and the ability to assess which types of policy and practice are most effective.
• It appears political ideologies, rather than evidence, are more important in dictating policy.

Devolution has offered a chance for governments across the UK to develop different social policies and solutions to difficult issues. It offers a chance to compare whether this divergence is accompanied by a variation in outcomes. Reducing harm from alcohol misuse is an area in which policy, and related practice, has varied across the UK. The Alliance for Useful Evidence commissioned this report to illustrate this variation, and to examine any differences in use of evidence in UK alcohol policy. The report compares recent UK policies from the four jurisdictions in light of the evidence-based UK alcohol strategy, ‘Health First’, and finds substantial differences between the UK, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Policy Recommendations

• UK jurisdictions should more fully embrace the value of experimentation, and evaluate the impact of policies to add to the evidence base on what works, where, and for whom.
• Develop a database of current policies for the UK (.gov.uk is UK/English policies only).
• UK government should reverse its opposition to Minimum Unit Pricing.
• All UK governments/administrations should stop engaging with the alcohol industry, except in relation to their role as producers and retailers of alcohol.

Authors

Niamh Fitzgerald (University of Stirling), Colin Angus (University of Sheffield)