Alcohol abuse related crime costs UK £7.3bn

Categories

Addiction Treatment
Alcohol
Drugs
Gambling
In the papers
On TV

News Archive

Home » News » Alcohol » Alcohol abuse related crime costs UK £7.3bn

by Change | 11 Nov 2008

Bookmark

E-mail

A government report has found costs incurred due to alcohol abuse totalled £7.3 billion last year.

Crime related to alcohol abuse has cost the UK £7.3 billion over the last twelve months, a government study states.

The Select Committee on Home Affairs report suggests excessive consumption, as in cases of alcohol addiction, can lead to a loss of inhibitions and an increased chance of committing a criminal act.

Police response to these incidents required an expenditure of £1.7 billion in the last year.

Overall costs incurred from offences where alcohol abuse is a factor are £2.5 billion, while loss of productive output due to this reached £1 billion during the period.

Nottinghamshire chief constable Stephen Green wrote to the committee claiming "the whole focus of officer shift patterns" is centred around times where incidents related to alcohol abuse are most likely.

He stated: "The net effect is there are fewer officers on duty during the rest of the week."

The report cites the latest British Crime Survey, which suggested 45 per cent of all violent crime victims state their attacker was intoxicated at the time of the incident.

It also found alcohol is involved in nearly two-fifths of domestic violence cases.

Bookmark this: