Tories twice as likely as Labour rivals to approve of voting in Parliament after drinking

Tory MPs are more than twice as likely as their Labour counterparts to think it is acceptable to speak or vote in Parliament after drinking alcohol, a survey has found.

The majority of Conservative politicians (57 per cent) said they would have no problem with representing their constituents in the Commons following an alcoholic beverage, compared with 23 per cent of Labour MPs, according to a poll by Savanta.

The survey was commissioned by the charity Alcohol Change UK, which campaigns against the harm caused by alcohol.

Overall, almost three in 10 (28 per cent) MPs from all political parties said it was acceptable to consume alcohol before voting or speaking in the Commons.

Last week, it emerged that one of Parliament’s most famous bars has been closed for a security review after a woman allegedly had her drink spiked.

Strangers’ Bar, a drinking spot for MPs in the Palace of Westminster, is to close from Monday, a House of Commons spokesman confirmed.

Richard Piper, chief executive of Alcohol Change UK, said he found the high number of MPs who thought it was acceptable to drink alcohol while working “surprising”.

‘In how many jobs is that acceptable?’

“In how many jobs is that acceptable in? Among the public, this has close to zero support,” he said. “I think it’s a little bit out of touch, to be blunt. You wouldn’t drive a car so why would you drive the country under the influence of alcohol?”

Savanta interviewed 102 MPs online about their views on a range of different alcohol-related topics. The survey found that almost one in five MPs feel under pressure to drink alcohol, which rises to 22 per cent among the new intake.

Male MPs said they were more likely to feel under pressure to drink alcohol than their female counterparts – 21 per cent versus 16 per cent.

Asked whether they supported minimum unit pricing for alcohol, 60 per cent of Labour MPs agreed compared to 26 per cent of Conservatives.

Mr Piper said that he welcomed the “strong support” for minimum unit pricing among Labour MPs, adding that there has been a “strong shift in approach” to this kind of measure with Sir Keir Starmer’s Government.

“For some reason the previous government didn’t buy the prevention argument,” he said. “There has definitely been a shift.”

‘Very alarming’

Speaking at an event run by Alcohol Change UK last week, Andrew Gwynne, the public health minister, said: “The Government recognises that for too long, there has been an unwillingness to lead on issues like alcohol harm.

“The sharp increase in alcohol specific deaths during and since the pandemic is very alarming, and it cannot be allowed to continue.

“We are committed to shortening the amount of time people spend living in poor health and to preventing premature death.

“Our ambitions will require determined and wide ranging action on the drivers of ill health, especially on tobacco, on obesity and on alcohol harms, and we’re working at pace, through our health mission to understand how to do this effectively.”