ABSTRACT

Scotland has a distinctive drinking culture and alcohol policy context. Because consumption data has only recently been gathered separately from the rest of the UK, the historical evidence on overall consumption levels and patterns is limited (though spirits drinking has always been more prevalent); however, it is clear that consumption has been higher than the UK average for the past 20 years, as have levels of alcohol-related health harms. In 2011, 20 per cent more alcohol was sold per adult in Scotland than in England and Wales, and alcohol mortality rates among men were 1.8 times higher in Scotland (Robinson et al., 2011: 4) (Figure 6.1). Litres of pure alcohol sold per adult in Scotland and England and Wales https://s3-euw1-ap-pe-df-pch-content-public-p.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/9780203084557/7e09356b-a5dc-4cda-9594-636512b127da/content/fig6_1.tif"/> Source: Adapted from NHS Scotland (2016).