Public health leaders are calling for urgent action to increase the price of cheap alcohol in supermarkets and off-licences. A two-litre bottle of cider can be bought in England for less than £2, which equates to 22p per unit of alcohol.

Health officials believe a review is almost certain given the findings of the report and the rising death toll, even though the government reportedly ruled out minimum unit pricing shortly after winning power.

The Guardian reported that Greg Fell, president of the Association of Directors of Public Health, said England needed to follow Scotland and Wales by introducing minimum unit pricing: “The evidence is crystal clear. It saves lives.”

He added that a comprehensive national alcohol strategy was required, with a package of measures to reduce hospital admissions and deaths linked to excessive drinking. “The freezing of alcohol duty should no longer continue,” he went on. “It should [rise] in line with inflation.”

Darzi’s report, published last month, said deaths attributed to alcohol stabilised when “tough action” was taken. He was referring to the duty escalator, which increased alcohol duty by 2% above inflation each year between 2008 and 2014. The report also noted an increase in the alcohol affordability index in the UK from 100 in 1987 to 200 in 2023.

Darzi wrote: “Alcohol is becoming more affordable over time, and deaths are rising at an alarming rate. In the pandemic, there was a 10.8% annual increase between 2019 and 2022.” He said prevention was better than cure, and bold action was required.

According to the report, Martin McKee, professor of European public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said:

“If you put up the price of alcohol, it will reduce the amount that is being consumed. The evidence from Scotland is that it does reduce consumption among the heaviest drinkers who experience the most harm, and it does reduce deaths.”

Richard Piper, chief executive of the charity Alcohol Change UK, said:

“The harm caused by alcohol affects millions of us every day, from low energy and anxiety to high blood pressure and cancer. Minimum unit pricing is a targeted measure which does not increase the price of all alcoholic drinks.

“It raises the price of the strongest, cheapest drinks – the ones that cause most harm.”

Prof Sir Ian Gilmore, chair of the Alcohol Health Alliance, which ­promotes evidence-based policies to reduce the harm of alcohol, said minimum unit pricing was not a “magic bullet” but, given the number of deaths, it was “imperative” to act on prices, adding: “A duty escalator and minimum unit pricing would be an effective way of doing it.”