IAS Strategy 2026-2029

Securing a healthier future by tackling alcohol harm

Alcohol harm has wide‑ranging impacts on health, social care, criminal justice and the economy, with the greatest burden falling on people living in more deprived communities. After more than a decade without a national alcohol strategy, and with alcohol‑specific deaths increasing dramatically since the Covid-19 pandemic, the need for sustained, evidence‑based action is urgent.

In 2025, IAS published A Healthier Future: A long‑term vision to tackle alcohol harm in the UK. Developed in collaboration with experts across policy, research and treatment, the report sets out a shared vision, clear long‑term targets, and a roadmap for achieving lasting progress. It calls for action to halve risky drinking, reverse rising alcohol deaths, and dramatically improve access to treatment, supported by a coherent package of evidence‑based policies.

This strategy sets out how IAS will focus its work between 2026 and 2029 to help deliver that long‑term vision. It aligns our core activities, new projects and partnerships around a single strategic aim: ensuring that evidence is translated into action and that policymakers are supported – and challenged – to act in the public interest.

New projects and areas of focus (2026–2029)

Over the next three years, IAS will deliver a programme of new projects designed to address emerging challenges, strengthen the evidence base and support delivery of the long‑term vision.

Exposing alcohol industry influence and conflicts of interest

Projects exploring alcohol industry links to the UK civil service, mapping approaches to managing conflicts of interest, and investigations into alcohol industry engagement in areas such as prison health and sustainability, will build on IAS’s established leadership on governance and industry influence. Together, these projects will provide practical insights for policymakers and reinforce the case for stronger safeguards in public health decision‑making.

Responding to changes in alcohol availability and marketing

Projects on alcohol home deliveries, licensing reform, and pub sector attitudes will examine how shifts in the alcohol market affect harm, recovery and public support for policy action. By combining qualitative research, policy analysis and stakeholder engagement, IAS will generate timely evidence to inform regulation of online sales, licensing systems and alcohol marketing.

Documenting alcohol’s impact on public services

By repeating landmark surveys on alcohol’s impact on emergency services and comparing policy approaches across the UK’s four nations, IAS will continue to document how alcohol harm is experienced on the frontline and how different policy choices shape outcomes across society.

Quantifying the benefits of action

We will work with experts to quantify the health and economic benefits of meeting the targets set out in A Healthier Future: A long-term vision to tackle alcohol harm in the UK. This will provide policymakers with robust estimates of the potential gains from action, including impacts across different population groups, and strengthen the case for investing in prevention and treatment.

Strengthening the political case for action

We will draw on first‑hand reflections from senior policymakers to analyse why past commitments have fallen short and how future governments can overcome longstanding political barriers. This project will complement IAS’s long‑term vision by focusing on how change happens in practice, rather than restating policy asks, and will produce a political manual for effective alcohol policy.