Doctors call for 50% hike in price of spirits

THE drinks industry has rejected doctors’ calls for increasing the price of spirits by half in the next Budget, arguing alcohol consumption is a personal choice unlinked to cost.

Last night, IBEC’s Drink Manufacturers of Ireland (DMI), the representative body for the alcohol manufacturing sector, said doctors “needed to be aware of the practical and social impact” of some of their proposals.

At the AGM of the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) in Killarney, Co Kerry, doctors voted in favour of three separate motions calling for a hike in alcohol prices, including a 50% per measure increase in the price of spirits and an increase in excise duty on all alcohol, greater than the rate of inflation.