If adopted, the new tax would increase the cost of beer, wine and hard liquor by 10 percent. Critics complain that the tax would not deter those who drink to excess but would unfairly penalize responsible drinkers.

Cost is not a factor for people on an alcohol binge, they say.

Health advocates argue that a tax is the only approach that would work, pointing to positive results of similar initiatives in Ireland and the Netherlands.

The National Alcohol Strategy recommends basing the tax on alcohol volume rather than on the price of the beverage, which would result in drinks lower in alcohol content being more affordable. In Australia, beer is already taxed by the amount of alcohol it contains, but wine and pre-mixed drinks are not.

Under the plan, proceeds from the new tax would be used to fund alcohol treatment programs and services. The strategy also proposes steps to stem the flow of alcohol to minors and to curb advertising for alcoholic products.

While Australian officials mull the new tax, UK health experts are calling for action to address alcohol addiction following the release of new research on binge drinking in England.

According to the study, 18.2 percent of adults consume more than twice the daily recommended limit of alcohol at least once a week. For men, the acceptable limit in England is 4 pints of beer, 4 glasses of wine, or 8 spirit measures (about 8 ounces of hard liquor). For women, the limits are 3 pints of beer, 3 glasses of wine or 6 spirit measures.

There are regional differences in drinking habits in England, the researchers observed. In the north, almost 25 percent of all adults drink twice the daily recommended limit at least once a week. In the south, about 16 percent of adults double their daily limits on one or more occasions each week.

Officials in England blame the cheap price of alcohol and a failure to educate the public on the dangers of overconsumption for the trend. Health advocates are calling on the government to take on the alcohol industry to protect the public welfare, arguing that binge drinking shortens lives.