Video: Minimum alcohol pricing necessary-David Cameron David Cameron had promised to crack down on excessive drinking, calling it a "scandal" that costs the taxpayer-funded National Health Service an estimated 2.7 billion pounds a year. I said months ago that we needed to get to grips with the problem of super-cheap alcohol that's fuelling violence on our streets and causing mayhem in our Accident and Emergency units and damaging the health of the country. And I think this minimum unit pricing is a big part of the answer. It's mad when you can buy cans of lager for 25p or two litres of cider for less than two pounds. So we need to deal with that and this shows a radical government, not frightened of taking big decisions, rolling up its sleeves and getting on with the job," he said. Health experts said last month up to 210,000 people in England and Wales will be killed prematurely by alcohol over the next 20 years. Supermarkets and drinks manufacturers, however, voiced opposition to the plan, saying there was no proven link between price and alcohol consumption. Media reports had suggested that the minimum price level would be set at 40 pence per unit of alcohol but the government said it would consult on the issue before setting a level.