A can of lager can't be sold for less than £1.30 from today

Campaigners have hailed “lifesaving” legislation that will make the new minimum unit price (MUP) for alcohol 65p from today (30 September).

Public Health Scotland has estimated that minimum unit pricing has saved 156 lives and reduced hospital admissions by 411 every year since it was implemented in 2018.

However, with inflation having eroded the effectiveness of the 50p MUP, campaigners say it was necessary that it rose to 65p to maintain the clear public health benefits of the policy.  

It means a 12.5% bottle of wine cannot be sold for less than £6.09 and a can of lager will be at least £1.30.

And a bottle of vodka will now cost at least £17.06 in Scotland - about £5 more than many supermarkets are selling it for in England, where there is no minimum pricing.

Alcohol Focus Scotland, and other campaigners, are now calling for the introduction of an automatic uprating mechanism for MUP to maintain its effectiveness longer term.

They also calling for an alcohol harm prevention levy on alcohol retailers to ensure that any increased spend on alcohol is used for public prevention, treatment and recovery support rather than being retained as profit by shops and supermarkets.   

At the same time, they have warned against treating MUP as a silver bullet in tackling the ongoing alcohol emergency in Scotland, calling for a radical step change in the government’s response.

Alison Douglas, CEO of Alcohol Focus Scotland said: “The uprating of the minimum unit price for alcohol to 65p is a welcome and necessary step to ensure that this life saving policy remains effective. The Scottish Government and Parliament are to be commended for implementing this policy in the first place, and for deciding to renew the policy and increase the minimum price.   

“They now need to ensure the price is automatically uprated by inflation going forward, otherwise the positive effects will once again be eroded over time. Alcohol Focus Scotland is also calling for an alcohol harm prevention levy on alcohol retailers, which the Fraser of Allander Institute estimated could raise as much as £57million a year to invest in alcohol treatment services.   

“MUP has been a success and Scotland has led the way, with Wales, Jersey and the Republic of Ireland having followed in our footsteps. However, Scotland is now in danger of losing its world leading position in tackling the health harms caused by alcohol. Alcohol specific deaths have just reached a 15-year high and Scottish Government has declared alcohol harm a public health emergency; yet we have seen no emergency response.   

“The decision to further delay a promised consultation on alcohol marketing appears to be evidence of a ‘policy chill’ created by vociferous opposition from Big Alcohol, who see effective public health action as a threat to their profit margins.   

“Introducing MUP was a great example of Government doing the right thing for the health and prosperity of our nation. It’s time to show leadership in tackling alcohol harm once again by improving the identification of people at risk of alcohol problems; increasing access to treatment and recovery support for those already experiencing them; and taking preventative action on marketing and availability to protect future generations.”