Booze will 'kill 250K people in the UK over the next 20 yrs'

London, Feb 21 (ANI): Health experts have warned that alcohol consumption will kill up to 250,000 extra people in England and Wales over the next 20 years.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show there were 8,664 such deaths in the UK during 2009 - up from 6,884 in 2000.

But three leading experts have claimed that we are likely to see a further escalation in deaths because current government plans will not address the problem.

Measures proposed by the Government include banning the sale of alcohol below cost price and increasing duty on high-strength beer.

"Looking at the evidence, price is a crucial driver," Sky News quoted one of the three authors of the article and former president of the Royal College of Physicians, Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, as saying.

The article has been published in the Lancet. (ANI)