There were 1,185 alcohol-specific deaths registered in Scotland last year, according to the latest National Records of Scotland figures. The total is 7 per cent lower than 2023 – which saw the highest figure since 2008 – and represents a five-year low.
As in previous years, men accounted for around two thirds of the deaths, with the most deprived areas recording a death rate four and a half times that of the least deprived. Dundee City, Glasgow City, Inverclyde, North Lanarkshire and West Dunbartonshire all had higher than average alcohol-specific mortality rates, the agency says. The average age of death was 60 for men, and 58 for women. However, the figures only include deaths from causes wholly attributable to alcohol use, such as alcoholic liver disease.
While the falling death rate was welcome ‘we cannot become complacent’, said drugs and alcohol policy minister Maree Todd. ‘This is a public health priority and we are continuing to channel our energy towards reducing alcohol harm further. There is still a lot of work to be done to save and improve lives.’
The most recent Scottish drug death figures, published earlier this month, also showed a decrease on the 2023 total – down 13 per cent to 1,107. However, the drug death rate has long been the highest in Europe, with the most deprived communities again seeing the worst effects. A 2024 Audit Scotland report said the scale of Scotland’s ongoing drug deaths crisis had shifted attention away from alcohol, with the country making slow progress in its strategies for tackling alcohol harm, while Public Health Scotland has projected a 54 per cent increase in the number of Scots living with chronic liver disease by 2024.
‘Despite a fall in the number of deaths recorded last year, three people are still losing their lives every day in Scotland specifically because of alcohol,’ said Abbeycare registered manager Douglas McFarlane. ‘This is clearly far too high, and there should be a renewed national focus on preventing people from drinking to hazardous levels. Our staff see first-hand the terrible impact that excessive drinking can have, not just on people’s bodies but on their families, careers, and wider relationships. We would like to see more funding put towards harm reduction and treatment services for alcohol, to help turn this year-on-year fall in deaths into a longer-term trend.’
It was important to ensure the drop was the start of a sustained trend, agreed Alcohol Health Alliance UK chair Professor Sir Ian Gilmore. ‘Every one of these deaths was entirely preventable, and behind each number lies a personal tragedy. We have seen brave, preventative action from the Scottish Government in recent years with the introduction and uprating of minimum unit pricing and plans to review alcohol marketing rules. Meanwhile Westminster has failed to follow suit. With death rates in England spiralling, our government must step up and follow Scotland in leading the way on reducing alcohol harm.’
Alcohol-specific deaths 2024 available here