Heavier drinking during Covid led to 2,500 more deaths from alcohol in 2022 – ONS

The 33% jump in deaths from alcohol-specific causes between 2019 and 2022 was a sharp increase on the pre-pandemic trend, which had been steady since 2012. Photograph: David Jones/PA

Alcohol killed a record number of people in 2022 as heavier drinking in the Covid pandemic took its toll in the UK, official figures have revealed.

Nearly 2,500 more people died from drinking than in 2019 (7,565 deaths), the year before the virus hit and caused already heavy drinkers to increase their intake, the Office for National Statistics said.