Debate contribution: Alcohol: Minimum Unit Pricing

Debate contribution by Mr Mike Nesbitt on 24 March 2026.

MLA

Mr Mike Nesbitt

Party at the time

Ulster Unionist Party

Date

24 March 2026

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Ministerial Statements

Heading

Alcohol: Minimum Unit Pricing

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5462791

Read the official Assembly record

Text

The Licensing and Registration of Clubs (Amendment) Act (Northern Ireland) 2021 places an onus on my Department to introduce legislation in Northern Ireland to set a minimum price for the sale or supply of intoxicating liquor and to prohibit its sale or supply below that price. If it has not been reasonably practicable for the legislation to be introduced, the 2021 Act requires me to make a statement to the Assembly on why it is not reasonably practicable so to do. The deadline for that is by the third anniversary of the Act coming into force: 6 April 2026. As the Assembly will be in recess for Easter, I make that statement today. I very much regret having to make the statement rather than introducing legislation on setting a minimum price, as envisioned in the 2021 Act and supported by the Assembly at that time. All of us will know that alcohol use has long been an accepted part of our social life and culture. Perhaps, to some extent, we have become desensitised to the harm that it causes. To put it in context, each year in Northern Ireland, alcohol causes twice as many deaths as illicit drugs. Much of our current activity is inevitably focused on addressing the harms of alcohol use. The prevention of those harms is more challenging, however the evidence strongly points to pricing initiatives, particularly minimum unit pricing (MUP), as providing one of the most effective ways of reducing such harms. That is why MUP has been under discussion for a number of years and has been proposed by multiple Health Ministers. My Department consulted on MUP in February 2022, and a summary of the responses was published in 2023. At the same time, updated independent modelling was commissioned to estimate the impact of MUP in Northern Ireland at a variety of price levels. Subsequently, I considered a full options paper, which set out a range of potential ways forward on using pricing mechanisms to reduce the harm that alcohol causes. The paper considered the consultation responses, the updated modelling and evidence and evaluations from around the world. From that very robust evidence base, I concluded that MUP, while not a panacea, would be an effective and targeted way to address the issue. I appeared before the Health Committee in October 2024 and again in February 2025, setting out my belief that we needed to progress legislation to introduce MUP. The Chief Medical Officer also gave evidence to the Health Committee as recently as January 2026, briefing members on the latest evidence and his professional public health position, supporting the introduction of minimum unit pricing. Primary legislation had been provisionally scheduled for introduction in 2026-27. Unfortunately, however, despite my efforts to provide information and address any concerns, it has not been possible to secure Executive agreement. Sadly, we have now reached the point where legislation for MUP is no longer deliverable in this mandate. That will have an impact on many vulnerable and at-risk people in Northern Ireland. The British Heart Foundation recently published a report estimating the burden of alcohol on Northern Ireland. That report estimated that 676 people die each year as a direct result of their alcohol consumption. Around half of those deaths are from alcohol-specific causes — those deaths are, by definition, caused by alcohol consumption. The remainder of the deaths are from conditions where alcohol is not the only cause but plays a contributory role. Alcohol-related liver disease is by far the single largest cause, accounting for 248 deaths a year, which is over a third of the total. The report illustrates the breadth of conditions where alcohol plays a direct role in increasing mortality rates, including injuries, seven different cancers and a range of cardiovascular conditions. The report also shows that, each year, an estimated 7,426 hospital admissions are caused by alcohol consumption. Alcohol-specific causes make up the biggest group of admissions, accounting for over 50% of the total. Alcohol-attributable cancer admissions are the second-largest contributor, accounting for almost one in five admissions. The report also records that the 25% of drinkers who exceed the UK Chief Medical Officer's guidelines account for 80% of all alcohol-related hospital admissions and 78% of all deaths caused by alcohol. Indeed, over half of all alcohol harms are concentrated among the 10% who drink at the highest levels, and the modelling and evaluations show that MUP targets those groups and highlights its benefits in addressing harm and reducing inequalities. That is why there is wide support for the measure across Northern Ireland. I was delighted to speak at the Northern Ireland Chest, Heart and Stroke MUP event at Parliament Buildings in November of last year. The event showed strong support for MUP across the public health sector, elected Members and the community and voluntary sectors. Their support has been amplified by the recent open letters from the Noncommunicable Disease Alliance and the Alcohol Health Alliance UK. The evidence presented at the event clearly sets out that an MUP would reduce alcohol consumption and lead to fewer people being admitted to hospital and dying as a result of their drinking. For example, in Scotland, it is estimated that MUP has led to 120 fewer alcohol deaths every year. In addition, the event reinforced that the impacts of MUP are targeted, with the greatest benefits being seen among the heaviest drinkers and those living in poverty, meaning that a minimum unit price would help to reduce health inequalities. For example, while the impact depends on the level at which MUP is set, modelling estimates that a 65p MUP would reduce alcohol consumption by 8·5%, with the largest reduction coming from harmful drinkers and increasing-risk drinkers; increase spending by only 1·9% for moderate drinkers and 2·3% for increasing-risk drinkers but reduce spending for higher-risk drinkers; and lead to a reduction of 82 alcohol-related deaths a year and a reduction of 3,482 alcohol-related hospital admissions a year. It would reduce crime by an estimated 3,188 offences a year, reduce workforce absences by an estimated 58,910 days per annum and result in healthcare savings of £117·4 million over 20 years. I have always been clear that MUP is not a silver bullet, but it is a proven, effective tool to reduce alcohol harm. It is also surrounded by misunderstandings, and it is important to address those. First, MUP is not a tax; it is simply a way of ensuring that the price of alcohol reflects its alcoholic strength and its potential harm. It will not affect the price of alcohol in the on-trade, which means pubs and clubs, nor will it impact on the price of products above the MUP. It does not target those on lower incomes; it is the heaviest drinkers who consume the cheapest alcohol and come to the most harm. That is consistent across alcohol types and for those in poverty and those not in poverty. Finally, there is no evidence that it causes people to shift to illicit alcohol or other drugs. It is also important to note that MUP is not focused on dependent drinkers. Dependent drinkers need timely access to high-quality treatment and support services. MUP targets the wider cohort of harmful and hazardous drinkers: those who drink above the UK Chief Medical Officer's guidelines but are not dependent. They are a significant population, and they come to harm; thus, MUP is a highly targeted measure. Through our wider substance use strategy, I am working to deliver improvements to our alcohol treatment system to help all those who are affected by alcohol harm. That is essential with or without MUP. The evidence shows, however, that by cutting off the supply of cheap alcohol, MUP is likely to reduce the number of people who become dependent in the future and reduce demand on our already overloaded health and social care (HSC) system. In fact, there is also evidence that increasing alcohol prices delays the initiation of alcohol use, slows younger people's progression towards consuming larger amounts and reduces heavy episodic use of alcohol among them.

From my perspective, I feel that not introducing minimum unit pricing is a missed opportunity — an opportunity that would have allowed the Assembly to make a meaningful difference to reducing alcohol-related harms and inequalities across our region. Therefore, I reiterate my regret that I am making this statement today rather than introducing legislation.

Finally, while there is clearly insufficient time left to legislate in this mandate, even if there were Executive agreement, it is my fervent hope that an incoming Health Minister and Executive will be able to introduce legislation early in the next mandate to address this important public health issue. I commend the statement to the House.

1,453 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not qualifying

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:15 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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