Alcohol duty crippling English wine industry

High levels of taxation are strangling the English wine-growing industry. That's the warning tonight from vineyards in the south east, where more than a quarter of all English wine

They say the duty on alcohol has risen by 50% in five years, and is still going up by more than the rate of inflation.

For an average bottle of wine, tax accounts for 57% of the price.The tax on spirits is even higher, at 79%.While the figure on a pint of beer is 33%.

But alcohol duty is an important source of revenue for the Government, & doctors say cheaper booze could encourage alcohol abuse. Malcolm Shaw reports