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A BBC Panorama alcohol report, ‚Dying for a Drink‘, this week questioned the level of industry influence over Government policy whilst exploring the impact of alcohol misuse within hospitals. Scrutinising Government alcohol policy, Panorama revealed that industry representation on the Government and Partners Alcohol Working Group had recently increased from a few up to 7 out of the 16 members. (Source: Alcohol Reports, 08/3/11)

A massive rise in the numbers of people drinking heavily and the cost of treating them is creating an unsustainable burden on NHS hospitals but more could be done to ease existing pressures, says an NHS Confederation report published recently. Too Much of the hard stuff: What alcohol costs the NHS, from the NHS Confederation and the Royal College of Physicians shows that the cost to the NHS of excess drinking has doubled in just five years, with most of the cost being spent on hospital and ambulance services. (Source: Medical News Today, 1/6/10)