Alcohol Review

Alcohol understanding for all

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Kenya to slash spirits tax 84%

To the disappointment of alcohol harm experts Kenya’s government is poised to slash tax on spirits by 84%, cutting it from 500 shillings ($3.9) per litre to 80 shillings.

“The adoption of the low rate is…a big blow to efforts in addressing alcohol use and harms in the country,” Celine Awuor of the International Institute for Legislative Affairs, a Kenyan NGO, told Alcohol Review.

“Our proposal to parliament on this was not to reduce the rate, but instead increase it to 900 shillings per litre, or retain the 500 shillings per litre at worst.” The only positive adjustment in the bill was the removal of a tax concession given to local small brewers, according to Awuor.

The cut to spirits tax was done to “support manufacturers” said Treasury secretary John Mbadi. It came after alcohol industry lobbying to reduce alcohol taxes across alcohol categories, often on the premise that it would reduce the problem of illicit alcohol products.

The bill passed parliament on Thursday despite strong opposition. President William Ruto is expected to give his assent in the next few days. ■

Alcohol Review – Issue 124, June 19th 2026

Register now – Early access, impactful dissemination and support dedicated alcohol harm journalism. Read testimonials

In this issue: Ireland guidance report; UK delivery promise; Sachet enforcement plan; Kenyan tax slashed. AR interviews on alcohol brain impact, deliveries, nolos, tackling youth addictions and alcohol distress.

AR2026 update: Watch full AI and alcohol harm sessions

Be among the first to watch the full public release of AR2026’s live online sessions on AI and alcohol harm, addressing its potential in ad monitoring and information delivery. You can also watch the latest AR2026 Extra sessions and contribute your own.

News

Risk equality: There is a “substantial amount of risk” for people drinking lower levels of alcohol, according to a new report from Ireland’s Health Information and Quality Authority, with “minimal” difference in risk between sexes. Comment

Delivery promise: The UK said last month it would ”act where necessary to protect public safety” on alcohol delivery from online platforms. The roundtable mentioned in AR’s piece was on June 16th, with NGO Alcohol Change in attendance. You can watch a video interview touching on the campaign.

Sachet forth: Nigeria’s regulator is planning to begin enforcing its ban on sachet alcohol from the marketplaces, having initially clamped down on manufacturing. Comment

Tax slashed: Kenya’s government has slashed tax on spirits by 84%, cutting it from 500 shillings ($3.9) per litre to 80. Comment

New cancer: Alcohol consumption and pancreatic cancer have a “dose-response risk relationship”, according to new research from from University of Victoria.  Pancreatic cancer is not among the seven cancers the WHO says are directly caused by alcohol consumption. Comment

Cancer advice: It is better to not drink alcohol at all rather than drink in moderation to prevent cancer, said Japan’s National Cancer Centre in an update to its advice at the start of June. Comment

VAT subsidy: The UK hospitality industry’s proposal of a VAT cut from 20% to 10% to save pubs and eateries would in reality be a “hugely expensive subsidy” for big business, according to tax expert Dan Neidle’. Comment

AR interviews (Await videos)

🎥 Study hints at alcohol’s low dose brain impact [full release]
Higher levels of alcohol consumption are associated with brain diseases and dysfunction, but there is little evidence of what happens at levels commonly thought of as low risk. A recent paper looked to narrow this gap with a small-sample study. Alcohol Review caught up with one of the authors, Professor Timothy Durazzo of Stanford University. Comment

🎥 Deaths, deliveries and nolos [full release]
Online alcohol delivery is thought to amplify the already increased risks of drinking alcohol at home. Richard Piper, CEO of Alcohol Change UK, outlines the charity’s campaign for tighter controls, while also reflecting on the UK’s elevated alcohol death toll and new research on alcohol-free drinks.

🎥 Tackling alcohol distress [trailer]
Simon Bratt, a senior lecturer at Liverpool Hope University and author of the Layered Care substack, explains why mental health and alcohol services need to be integrated to be effective in tackling problematic drinking. 

🎥 Dismantling the youth addiction economy [trailer]
Social media, vapes, gambling, dating sites and porn all now add to the mix of products which can undermine young people’s lives, along with alcohol. Regulation and making real friends are the way to put it right, says Joe Woof of Society Inside

Message

Alcohol and humour
“Alcohol may not make something objectively funnier, but it can definitely change the threshold for finding it funny,” says neuroscience researcher Paula Korczynska. Disinhibition can also be found through things like dancing and playing games.

Register now – Early access, impactful dissemination and support dedicated alcohol harm journalism. Read testimonials ■

Report suggests lowering and equalising Ireland’s alcohol guidelines

There is a “substantial amount of risk” for people drinking lower levels of alcohol, according to a new report from Ireland’s Health Information and Quality Authority, with “minimal” difference in risk between sexes.

“For premature mortality, the estimated lifetime risk is approximately 1 in 1,000 at around 5g/day [6.25ml/day] and 1 in 100 at around 18g/day [22.5ml/day] for men, and approximately 1 in 1,000 at around 4g/day [5ml/day] and 1 in 100 at around 16g/day [20ml/day] for women,” the report says.

The report is intended to inform an update to Ireland’s current low-risk alcohol guidelines of 137.5ml of alcohol a week for women and 212.5ml for men. These are typically expressed in Irish “standard drinks”, which are 12.5ml each.

The UK’s low-risk guidelines were set at 140ml a week for both men and women ten years ago. ■ 

Dismantling the youth addiction economy

Register for early access content, share your work and support dedicated alcohol harm journalism. Await Youtube releases

Social media, vapes, gambling, dating sites and porn all now add to the mix of products which can undermine young people’s lives. And alcohol is still there too. Regulation and opportunities to make real friends are the way to put it right, explains Joe Woof, co-lead of the Addiction Economy project at NGO SocietyInside. ■

Alcohol and humour

Some things are funny to people who are sober and other things are only funny to people who are inebriated. On the surface the situations look alike, but in which of them is something genuinely funny?

“Alcohol may not make something objectively funnier, but it can definitely change the threshold for finding it funny,” says neuroscience researcher Paula Korczynska. Disinhibition can also be found through things like dancing and playing games. ■


AR2026: AI and alcohol harm [full video release]

0:00 Intro

3:09 Session 1: AI ad monitoring

Learn how AI is being used to monitor alcohol ads from Professor Kathryn Backholer of Deakin University, offering the potential for far better monitoring and enforcement.

15:00 Session 2: AI information delivery

Explore the potential for general AI and bots to deliver alcohol information and from Nataly Bovopoulos of Australia’s Alcohol and Drug Foundation.

47:13 Q&A: Join the participant Q&A session

You can also now watch AR2026 Extra sessions on alcohol violence and alcohol’s impact on heart health. ■