MINISTERS must act now to ensure the level of alcohol-related deaths do not spiral out of control after they rose to the highest level for more than a decade, MSPs have said.

National Records of Scotland statistics show there were 1,190 alcohol-specific deaths registered in Scotland in 2020, 170 more than the previous year.

The rate was four times higher in the most deprived areas and the increase was mainly driven by male deaths: the figure for women was static.