Northern Ireland now has a higher proportion of alcohol-specific deaths than Scotland for the first time.
New figures from the UK’s Office for National Statistics showed a drastic change in outcomes in recent decades.
Two decades ago, Scotland had twice the number of alcohol deaths per capita than the north.
In 2001, there were 26.1 deaths per 100,000 people in Scotland compared to 12.4 in Northern Ireland, 10.1 in Wales and 8.9 in England.
By 2024, Northern Ireland has climbed to a rate of 21.4 deaths with Scotland at 20.9, Wales at 16.8 and England at 13.8.
Alcohol specific deaths in Northern Ireland have increased while reducing in Scotland. GRAPHIC: ONS
Across the four regions as a whole, the ONS said that alcohol deaths were at their lowest level since 2021 (14.8 deaths per 100,000) but that the “modest reduction” was “not cause for complacency.”
People in deprived areas were still disproportionately affected and were “between three and four times more likely” to die as a result of alcohol.
A total of 9,809 deaths from alcohol were registered in the UK in 2024, meaning deaths as a direct consequence of alcohol, such as alcoholic liver disease.
In Northern Ireland, the total for 2024 was 397, the highest rate in two decades.
Dr Katherine Severi, chief executive at the Institute of Alcohol Studies, said: “The fall in alcohol deaths from 2023 to 2024 offers a small but welcome sign that the UK is moving in the right direction – but let’s be clear: alcohol deaths remain at a deeply unacceptable level and we cannot allow that to become normal.
“These deaths were unacceptably high before the pandemic. They rose sharply during it. A modest reduction is not cause for complacency – it is cause for redoubling efforts.”
Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, chairman at the Alcohol Health Alliance, said that the deaths still “remain far too high and are still significantly above pre-pandemic levels”.
“It is a stark reminder that alcohol harm continues to devastate thousands of families and communities across every year.”
In England, the north west region had the highest death rate of 21.1, compared to London with the lowest at 10.9.
Dr Severi said that people “cannot ignore the scale of inequality behind these figures”.
“People in the most deprived communities are still between three and four times more likely to die from alcohol than those in the least deprived areas, despite drinking less,” she said.
Men were still around twice as likely to die from alcohol than women at a rate of 20.2.