BRITAIN: The drinking habits of the British are taking an increasing toll on their lives, according to figures showing that alcohol-related deaths soared in the past five years by 18.4 per cent.
The Liberal Democrats, who obtained the numbers from the UK's Office for National Statistics, called for a rethink of the Blair government's strategy on pub opening hours as they revealed the increase in deaths in some regions was higher still.
The biggest hike was in Yorkshire and Humberside, where deaths related to drinking rose by 46.5 per cent. In 2000, the region had 428 alcohol-related deaths, but 627 people died from drink in 2004.
Lynne Featherstone, Liberal Democrats home affairs spokeswoman, questioned the wisdom of the government's strategy on licensing hours.
"These figures are deeply worrying," she said. "The government must address the underlying reasons why people are drinking themselves - literally - to death."
The British charity Alcohol Concern said the figures were deeply worrying, and urged the government to think beyond its obsession with binge-drinkers whose noise and violence in the early hours offends the public and swamps accident and emergency departments.
The new figures concern problem drinkers, who may or may not be binge drinkers.
The total number of deaths across England and Wales rose from 5,525 to 6,544. These figures include only deaths from alcohol-related disease, such as cirrhosis, hepatitis and accidental alcohol poisoning.
If deaths in which alcohol-related violence are a factor are counted, such as stabbings and car accidents, the numbers are vastly higher.
The government uses a global figure of around 15,000 to 22,000 deaths a year, which includes around 1,000 suicides.