CUTS to services combating alcohol-related harm must be reversed and ring-fenced in this week’s Scottish budget, according to medics.

Funding for the services has seen an 8 per cent cut since 2014-15, despite evidence that harms grew during the Covid-19 pandemic as drinking in regulated premises gave way to greater unregulated consumption of alcohol at home.

Now, ahead of the SNP Scottish government’s budget announcement tomorrow, Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP) has called for the cash to be not only restored but ring-fenced.