The excise on pre-mixed drinks, such as those with vodka and lemonade, will rise to A$67 (S$85) a litre of pure alcohol from A$39 a litre, Health Minister Nicola Roxon said yesterday.

The changes, which took effect last Saturday, will raise the price of a can or bottle of the beverages bought in stores by between 30 Australian cents and A$1.30.

The new tax rate will increase government revenue by about A$2 billion.

Mr Rudd has pledged to change Australia's 'drinking culture' with launch programmes to promote responsible consumption, pay for a A$20 million national advertising blitz and promises to cut funding to sports clubs that abuse alcohol.

Australia is ranked fifth - behind Ireland, France, the United Kingdom and New Zealand - for per capita consumption of alcohol, World Health Organisation figures from 2005 show.

Pre-mixed spirit drinks are the fastest-growing segment of the Australian liquor market, with consumption rising 6.5 per cent in 2006 from a year earlier, according to the most recent government data.

Taxes on pre-mixed spirit drinks fell in 2000 when the former John Howard government cut the excise as part of its introduction of a national goods and services tax of 10 per cent.

'What we've seen from 2000 is an absolute explosion in the sales of these products, and we've seen some serious problems, particularly for young people,' Ms Roxon said.

Almost one in five Australians drinks daily and 48 per cent of males in 2005 said they binged at least once a week, according to a study by the Canberra-based Institute of Health and Welfare.

Following Mr Rudd's initiative, Australian football, cricket, rugby and netball clubs said they would adopt codes of conduct to moderate drinking. The nation's sporting stars will also appear in advertising campaigns warning against drinking to excess.

BLOOMBERG