The Bishop of Southwark Christopher Chessun pointed to academic research that showed the top 30 per cent of drinkers consumed 80% of all booze.

He also pointed out much of the beer in supermarkets was sold on promotion, priced well below 50p per unit.

He pressed the Government in the House of Lords as a study found supermarket beer is almost 188 per cent more affordable today than it was 30 years ago.

The Scottish Government has confirmed it will set a minimum price for alcohol of 50p a unit from May 1.

The bishop said: “Does the minister agree that a floor in the unit price of alcohol would help yield a more orderly, content and healthy society by bearing down on demand?”

Health Minister Lord O’Shaughnessy said a system was needed to target those drinking “in a way that is very, very deleterious for their health”.

He told peers: “Minimum unit pricing remains under review and the Government will consider the evidence of its impact once it is available.”

He said: “I think the issue here is not about the lack of evidence about whether reducing drinking has health benefits. It’s making sure any new system is implemented in a way that is fair on those who drink sensibly, particularly those with low income.”

Lord O’Shaughnessy pointed out the tax system had been “judiciously” to target problem high-strength drinks such as white cider.

Tory peer and surgeon Lord Riberio said…

New figures released by the Office for National Statistics reveal the number of opposite-sex marriages decreased by 3.4 per cent between 2014 and 2015, to 239,020.

Harry Benson, a Christian at the Marriage Foundation, a group which promotes marriage as a source of family stability, told Premier: “It’s pretty dire.

“If you have less marriage, it means less commitment and it means more family breakdowns.

“We, in Britain, languish at the bottom of a rather shameful league table for family stability amongst the whole of the developed world.

The number of opposite-sex couples choosing to get married has now reached its lowest level since records began in the 1830s or 1840s.

Coalition for Marriage, a group which supports the traditional common-law definition of marriage, said the figures were regrettable and highlighted a need for the Government to better-support marriage via education and the tax system.

Campaign director, Thomas Pascoe, a Christian said: “It is a matter of great regret that the number of marriages continues to fall, exactly as we feared.
 
“Unless the Government is prepared to put actions in place of warm words on marriage, we will see this great engine of social mobility become purely the reserve of the better-off.”

Click here to listen to Premier’s John Pantry and Rosie Wright speaking with Harry Benson at the Marriage Foundation:

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Rev Graham Young has offered to get essentials from shops for people who aren’t able to in Sunderland because of the bad weather.

Unrelenting snowfall has ground parts of the UK to a standstill.

Rev Young told Premier’s News Hour how his faith motivated him to help.

“Particularly at times when stuff is difficult I think it’s the Christian imperative that we need to go out and help our neighbours,” he said.

“I’m relatively able and I know that a lot of the people in Sunderland and the area I serve in aren’t.”

Meanwhile, the Met Office’s red weather warning has been extended to South West England and Wales – indicating possible danger to life.

Storm Emma’s rolling in from the Atlantic – bringing more heavy snow and possible drifts of up to 50 centimetres.

The so-called Beast from the East has already caused widespread disruption to road, rail and air travel.

Thousands of flights have been cancelled across Scotland, Wales and the north of England as deep snow and freezing temperatures continue to grip the UK.

Rev Young said both the sub-zero temperatures and people’s faith should motivate them to want to help as well.

He said: “I think the Christian life is a call to prayer and action.

“I don’t think it’s simply a call to prayer and it’s very easy to do one or the other – some…