Ireland paying heavy price for alcohol.

“We are all paying a high price for cheap alcohol,” the national charity for alcohol-related issues, Alcohol Action Ireland, has warned, while calling on the Government to implement budgetary measures it says could earn the Exchequer up to €182 million additional revenue and help reduce the estimated €3.7 billion in avoidable costs caused by alcohol-related harm each year. In a pre-Budget submission, the charity has asked the Government to restore excise duty to 2009 levels, which could earn the Exchequer €182 million in additional revenue and offset the significant revenue losses from last year’s excise duty cut. It has also requested the introduction of a minimum floor price for alcohol in tomorrow’s Budget, which it said would curb waste by discouraging or reducing consumption of alcohol in these difficult economic times..