The British Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday unexpectedly signalled a willingness to set a minimum price for alcohol.
The government is already set to ban the sale of alcohol below cost-price – but critics say this will have little impact.
Yesterday Mr Cameron set out the costs to society of alcohol abuse, saying it could be as much as £22 billion a year.
But he did not commit himself to minimum pricing – already planned in Scotland.
The government says its alcohol strategy will be published later this year.
He said: "Over the last decade we’ve seen a frightening growth in the number of people – many under-age – who think it’s acceptable for people to get drunk in public in ways that wreck lives, spread fear and increase crime.
“This is one of the scandals of our society and I am determined to deal with it.
"Whether it’s the police officers in A&E that have been deployed in some hospitals, the booze buses in Soho and Norwich, or the Drunk Tanks used abroad, we need innovative solutions to confront the rising tide of unacceptable behaviour."
For the Royal College of Physicians of London, UK, Professor Sir Ian Gilmore said: "He rightly identifies cheap drink as a major factor and I encourage him to join Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland in meeting this head on with a minimum unit price for alcohol."
He called for improved services in the NHS to identify and treat people with alcohol problems.
Tom Sandford, of the Royal College of Nursing, said: "The Government can no longer afford to simply nudge those people who consistently drink at dangerous and harmful levels, so we are glad to see the Prime Minister acknowledge the scale of the problem.
"The RCN has been calling for minimum pricing for some time as we genuinely believe that ‘pocket money prices’ along with deep discounting play a significant role in increasing the levels of alcohol consumption in some groups."
But Labour shadow health minister Jamie Reed said: "Today’s warm words from the prime minister look hastily thrown together. On a day when over 100,000 members of the public have joined NHS staff in calling on David Cameron to drop his reckless Health Bill, he is dodging the difficult questions and desperately trying to distract attention."
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