Introduction
1. For many people in the UK, alcohol is part of their social lives. As with most activities, drinking alcohol carries a degree of risk. In 2016, new guidelines were developed by the UK CMOs to enable people to make informed choices about their alcohol intake. The guidelines are not intended to prevent those who want to drink alcohol from doing so.
2. The Government believes people have a right to accurate information and clear advice about alcohol and its health risks and that it has a responsibility to ensure this information is provided for the public in an open and clear way, so they can make informed choices.
3. The Department of Health wishes to work with the alcohol industry and other partners to build on the actions to date on consumer information; enabling people to make decisions about when and how much they drink and helping to reduce alcohol-related health harms.
4. With this in mind, this document sets out the core elements of the guidelines that we would wish to see communicated to the public.
5. In line with the Portman Group’s advice we hope that companies will continue to ensure that the information on labels:
a. Is clear, legible, displayed on the primary packaging and not be difficult for consumers to find.
b. Is grouped together and companies are encouraged to differentiate the information from other information on the packaging, for example by use of a box, spacing and background colour).
c. Is not on a part of the primary packaging that is dispensed with before or immediately when the product is opened.
d. Does not contain anything which serves to undermine the health messaging.