Dr Hans Kluge, the WHO’s regional director for Europe, said: “Clear and prominent health warning labels on alcohol, which include a specific cancer warning, are a cornerstone of the right to health because they empower individuals with vital information to make informed choices about the harm alcoholic products can cause.
A spokesperson said: “Whilst we do not dispute the link between alcohol and cancer, and that drinking at harmful levels is dangerous and increases risks, blanket cancer warning labels are not a proportionate policy measure and do not put the risks into an appropriate context.
It has said governments should insist that “prominent” warning labels become standard in order to alert consumers to the link between alcohol and cancer and tackle the harm caused by heavy drinking.
She said Wes Streeting, the health secretary, should introduce “mandatory labelling requirements that include ingredients, calories, units, the chief medical officers’ drinking guideline and, crucially, health risks such as alcohol during pregnancy and cancer.
Cancer charities welcomed the move and said such labels would overcome the public’s widespread lack of awareness that alcohol is a proven cause of seven forms of cancer.
