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Government announces study into tackling the problems associated with alcohol misuse (19/7/2002)

The Prime Minister, Tony Blair, has asked the Strategy Unit to carry out a project looking at how to tackle the problems associated with alcohol misuse.

The project was announced today by Douglas Alexander, Minister of State for the Cabinet Office, in response to a parliamentary question from Mr Kevin Brannan MP (Cardiff West).

Douglas Alexander said:

'The large majority of people who drink do so without causing themselves or others harm. The focus of this project will be the harm that can be caused by excessive drinking.'

'The project will pay particular attention to issues such as alcohol-related crime and anti-social behaviour, problems faced by vulnerable groups such as children and what works best in tackling the problems of alcohol misuse,' he added.

The SU project will take a cross-cutting look at existing activities in Government departments, and the links with external organisations, to explore how resources and programmes can be better joined-up to more effectively address the problems that can be caused by alcohol.

Hazel Blears, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health, will be Sponsor Minister for the project. She said: 'This project will be the key means of developing the alcohol harm reduction strategy that the Government is committed to delivering. A SU project will help combine fresh thinking and rigorous analysis of the problems. The team will be working closely with the Department of Health as well as others within and outside Government.'

Notes for editors

  1. A scoping note outlining the background to the Strategy Unit (SU) project will be available on the Strategy Unit website (www.strategy.gov.uk).
  2. The SU aims to complete the project by Spring 2003.
  3. The SU provides the Prime Minister and Government departments with a capacity to analyse strategic policy issues and to design long-term solutions to problems.
  4. The SU is a merger of the Performance and Innovation Unit (PIU), the Forward Strategy Unit (FSU) and parts of the Policy Studies Directorate of the Centre for Management and Policy Studies (CMPS). The Strategy Unit is headed by Geoff Mulgan, the Director of both the PIU and FSU.
  5. The project team will be working closely with officials in the Department of Health who have been working on an alcohol harm reduction strategy, as well as other key stakeholders, including HO, DCMS, ODPM and DEFRA in Government, and representatives of user groups in the voluntary and commercial sectors.
  6. The project will undertake an extensive process of consultation with all stakeholders and relevant groups. The project announcement will start this process and the team will use a range of consultation routes to engage with stakeholders. It is expected that SU and the Department of Health will issue a joint consultation paper covering the SU project and the alcohol harm reduction strategy later this year.

For further information please contact:

Cabinet Office Press Office,
70 Whitehall,
LONDON,
SW1A 2AS

Tel: 020 7276 1203 - Fax: 020 7276 0618

www.cabinet-office.gov.uk

Out of hours telephone 07699 113300 and ask for pager number 721338.

Cabinet Office press notices are available on the World Wide Web:
http://www.nds.coi.gov.uk/coi/coipress.nsf