The Scottish government announced radical plans on Monday to clamp down on low-price alcohol sales in a bid to tackle Scotland’s “shocking” drink problem.
Ministers are set to introduce a minimum price per unit of alcohol, though the level has yet to be determined. The move will make Scotland one of the few places in the world with a minimum price for alcohol.
Edinburgh said cut-price deals encouraging bulk buying, such as “three for the price of two” offers, would be banned, with the display and marketing of alcohol restricted to certain areas in stores.
The plans were launched at a Glasgow hospital to underline the £2.25 billion (US$3.15 billion) cost of alcohol misuse in Scotland.
Scottish Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said the scale of the alcohol problem was “shocking.”
“Plummeting prices and aggressive promotion have led to a surge in consumption, causing and adding to health problems ranging from liver and heart diseases to diabetes, obesity, dementia and cancers,” she said.
Figures out last week showed that the number of hospital treatments for alcohol-related conditions hit a record 42,430 in 2007 and last year.
Sales figures showed nearly 50 million liters of pure alcohol were drunk in 2007 — 11.8 liters for every person aged over 16.
That is the equivalent of everyone over 16 drinking 570 pints of beer, or 125 bottles of wine, or 42 bottles of vodka.
Researchers found that almost 1,500 Scots were dying per year from alcohol-related problems.
Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said: “Cheap, readily available alcohol is fueling violent crime and anti-social behavior, as well as taking its toll on our economy and health service.”
However, Fiona Moriarty, director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “Irresponsible drinking is not about price or availability, yet this is the main focus of the government’s approach.”
“At a time when customers’ finances are under severe pressure, it’s incredible that the Scottish government believes voters will thank them for using the force of law to push up prices,” she said.
The Portman Group, an alcohol industry body which promotes responsible drinking, said the plans were flawed and would punish all drinkers.
Group chief executive David Poley said people who drank to get drunk would not be influenced by the measures.
“We should be targeting the harmful drinking minority through better education and effective law enforcement,” he said in a statement.
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