A new study is strongly suggesting that the minimum unit pricing for alcohol – a law pushed through by the Labour Government in Cardiff two years ago – does not curb drinking for more vulnerable consumers.
The report, published in the British Medical Journal, said that consumption among the 5 per cent of heaviest drinkers in Scotland had increased after the price control was introduced.
A minimum unit price (MUP) of 50p per unit (8g) of alcohol was set in 2018 in Scotland as part of a strategy designed to stem harmful drinking. The Labour Government followed suit and MUP has been in place in Wales since 2020.
The expert study also reported that the alcohol tax was not associated with reduced consumption in younger, more deprived, or the heaviest drinking men — those the policy was primarily designed to target.
Commenting, Welsh Conservative and Shadow Health Minister Russell George MS said:
“The more I read about the effects of minimum unit alcohol pricing, the more it seems like a failed policy that the Labour Government should never have pursued.
“When this Bill was being considered by the Senedd, we stressed the importance of putting in safeguards such as stronger monitoring and data collection methods to ensure it did not push alcoholics towards more harmful, cheaper substances or penalised those on low incomes.
“This is why we advocated for a sunset clause to bring the law to an end should it fail. Sadly, Labour ignored those calls, forced this through, and now we are stuck with a law that is clearly failing in its purpose and we won’t get rid of it because ministers cannot admit when they got it wrong.
“Maybe if Mark Drakeford focussed on addressing the record long NHS backlog – where 1-in-5 Welsh people reside – instead of following the Scottish nationalists like a grateful puppy, then Wales would be in a far stronger position.”
The Times story is available here thetimes.co.uk/article/minimum-pricing-does-not-slow-down-heaviest-drinkers-qhcqpvchd
