The Government should increase tax on alcohol by 25 percent and use the money to help counter damage caused by alcohol abuse, the Salvation Army says.
The tax increase could reduce drinking by teenagers and heavy drinkers by 10 percent, but would have little effect on moderate drinkers, its social policy and parliamentary unit director Major Campbell Roberts said in a report released today.
"Changes in this order would markedly reduce the misery and the social and fiscal costs associated with dangerous drinking without penalising responsible drinkers."
The increase would raise the cost of a handle of beer at a bar by 20 percent and a bottle of wine from an off-licence by 50 cents.
A six pack of bourbon and cola and a cask of wine would go up by $2.
The Salvation Army also recommended drinks be taxed solely on their alcohol content, with drinks containing less than 2.5 percent alcohol exempt of local taxes, Mr Roberts said.
Under the current system low alcohol drinks often cost more than mid or high strength drinks.
The additional revenue, which could be as much as $180 million, could be used to reduce harmful drinking by investing in programmes such as social marketing campaigns to educate people on alcohol-related risks, he said.
The Salvation Army was seeing an increase in families who said alcohol abuse and addiction was a leading cause of poverty and family violence in their lives, Mr Roberts said.
In the year to September admissions to its rehabilitation programmes for substance addiction had grown by 21 percent.
NZPA