European
Commission
EU Action to reduce alcohol
related harm: recent
developments and next steps
Ceri Thompson
Team Leader: Alcohol and Drugs
DG Health and Consumers
European Commission
European
Commission
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Alcohol Strategy timeline
Council Recommendation in 2001
included examples of good practice
Alcohol in Europe report
Health Impact Assessment
EU Alcohol Strategy October 2006
Endorsed by
 Council Conclusions November 2007
 EP Report August 2007
First progress report presented to the
EU Expert Conference on Alcohol and
Health September2009
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European
Commission
The situation in 2006
 Third largest risk factor for ill health
in the EU
 12% of male and 2% of female
premature deaths under age of 75
years
 195,000 premature deaths per year
in EU
 27,000 deaths from alcohol related
accidents (1 in 4 road deaths)
 50,000 cancer deaths
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European
Commission
The situation in 2009
 No new health outcome or road safety
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figures
Fairly stable alcohol consumption trends
New information on
 Attitudes (EB survey)
 Behaviours (e.g. ESPAD study shows changes to
consumption patterns in EU, e.g. binge drinking
increasing in some countries among young
women)
 Extent of health inequalities between MS
 The role of affordability and pricing policy
 New changes to the landscape (economic
downturn across EU – impact unknown)
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Structure for implementation
European
Commission
European Alcohol
and Health Forum
Plenary
Open Forum
Member States:
Committee on
National Alcohol
Policy and
Action
(CNAPA)
Health in other
policies
Taskforces
Science Group
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European
Commission
What else is new since
2006
 The Commission and the EP
 Council Conclusions
 Legal framework (new Treaty with
references to alcohol)
 New EESC opinion
 For 2010:
 Global Alcohol Strategy
 WHO report on the Economic and Social
costs of Alcohol
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European
Commission
Conclusions
 Post strategy consensus
 Structures now in place for
implementation and increasingly
operational
 We are seeing a steady convergence
of MS actions (age limits increasing,
BAC limits lowering)
 Political and legal framework for
alcohol at EU level is in transition
 Current strategy ends in 2012
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European
Commission
Merci!
Thank you!
DG Health and Consumers
European Commission, Brussels
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