Gordon Brown's record on alcohol taxation

Will Gordy indulge his alleged puritanical tendencies and clamp down on alcohol misuse now he's in charge? He doesn't seem too keen on alcohol taxation - especially for spirits, cider and sparkling wine. The extracts below are from Gordon Brown's Budget speeches all those years he was Chancellor.

Meanwhile, a new factsheet from the Institute of Alcohol Studies "Alcohol: Price, legal availability and expenditure" shows that alcohol was 54% more affordable in 2003 than 1980.

1998: From January 1 next year, alcohol duties will be uprated in the normal way, by 1p on a pint of beer and 4p on a bottle of wine. For a bottle of spirits the duty will be frozen at its current level.

1999: I have decided to freeze the duty on spirits, on beer and on wine at its current level. There will be no tax rise on alcohol this side of the millennium.

2000: This year an inflation rise would push the price of whisky up by 22 pence a bottle. Because of the competitive position of the industry I will this year continue to freeze duty on all spirits. Beer will rise only by inflation - by 1 pence a pint- and wine only by inflation, by 4 pence a bottle.

2001: This year an inflation rise would push the price of whisky up by 11 pence a bottle. Because of the competitive position of the industry I will this year continue to freeze duty on whisky and on all spirits. And this year I propose to go further and freeze duty on wine and on beer.

2002: To budget effectively for our long term spending plans including our major commitments to the NHS, I have also to make major decisions about other taxes. I have to make this year's decision on duties on beer, spirits and wine - I have decided to freeze them.

2003: I propose, from Monday, the annual inflation rise of 1 pence on a pint of beer, 4 pence on a bottle of wine. I will freeze duties on cider and sparkling wine.

Because past governments set higher taxes on the alcohol content of spirits than on beer and wine, I will for the sixth Budget in a row, freeze all spirits duties, the longest freeze for 50 years, benefiting whisky producers in all parts of the United Kingdom.

2004: From next Monday I will implement the normal annual inflation rise of 1p on a pint of beer, 4p on a bottle of wine. But I will freeze duties on cider and sparkling wine.

2005: I will implement from midnight on Sunday the normal annual inflation rise of 1p on a pint of beer, 4p on a bottle of wine but I will freeze duty on spirits, cider and sparkling wine.

2006: I will freeze duty on whiskey and all spirits for the ninth successive year, the longest period without an increase for half a century. I will implement, from midnight on Sunday, only the normal annual inflation rise of 4 pence on wine, 1 pence on a pint of beer. In anticipation of world cup success this summer, I am freezing duty on champagne … and on British sparkling wine. I will also freeze duty on cider.

2007: I propose only the normal indexation of alcohol duties. From midnight on Sunday, beer will rise by 1p a pint, cider by 1p a litre, wine by 5p a bottle and sparkling wine by 7p. But for the tenth Budget in a row I will freeze duty on spirits.