Minimum pricing on booze

[DappaDonDave]

Discuss....

Stupid idea! I love a bottle of strongbow now and again as its cheap but is pretty darn tasty! But for £6 potentially, it's it worth it! Tis a stupid idea and I hope Cameron backtracks to make himself look good!

 

[jpenno]

A recipe for disaster, petty crime will increase to fund booze, organised crime will make a fortune on illegal sales and casual drinkers may turn to other recreational substances instead

 

[In_The_Rough]

Like everything else the Governments come up with flawed in every sense.

 

[shewy]

I actually think the price of booze should be kept to a minimum

 

[USER1999]

Heck, I think they should give it away.

Why try to reduce people's drinking and smoking? We have a looming pensions crisis as every one is living too long, and yet those on a mission to end it early are being hampered by high prices. They should be encouraged, with tax breaks.

 

[StrangelyBrown]

I thought it was only applicable to the cheapest of the cheap crap booze..? The 3 litres of Frosty Jack cider for £1.49 sort of booze..?

I'm not convinced that if you drink booze that's better than tramp's fighting juice that you'll notice much difference in price at all..?

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Another example of Westminster copying Holyroods lead.

The Scottish Parliament has stopped multi deal marketing in booze such as three bottles of wine for £10.
This appears to be quite successful and has certainly put the big superstores back in their cages.

They tried to introduce minimum pricing a few years ago but the Labour and Tory MSP's would not back it. I think this is one of the reasons that the SNP won an overall majority as the Scottish public would definately back such a move.
Makes a lot of sense to me as the UK has a serious alcohol problem and the hospitals are stuffed with folk with alcohol related illnesses.

 

[Ethan]

Plenty of research shows that consumption of alcohol (and cigarettes) is pretty price sensitive, at least at a population level. Price controls are one way to manage consumption when it is desired to reduce it as a public health issue. Whether you agree with that approach to policy or not is another question, but it is likely to have at least some degree of the desired effect, and although mechanisms will emerge to get round it, they will not fully replace the decreased consumption.

 

[AmandaJR]

Heck, I think they should give it away.

Why try to reduce people's drinking and smoking? We have a looming pensions crisis as every one is living too long, and yet those on a mission to end it early are being hampered by high prices. They should be encouraged, with tax breaks.

Write a manifesto - there's some mileage in that concept :cheers:

 

[chrisd]

Why should I as a very moderate and occasional drinker pay more just because some numpty decides to abuse him/herself by deciding to get blotto on a regular basis. Are they going to increase the minimum price of steak pies because there are a lot of fat people?

 

[bobmac]

Are they going to increase the minimum price of steak pies because there are a lot of fat people?

I hope not, I love steak pie (home made)

 

[Aztecs27]

Discuss....

Stupid idea! I love a bottle of strongbow now and again as its cheap but is pretty darn tasty! But for £6 potentially, it's it worth it! Tis a stupid idea and I hope Cameron backtracks to make himself look good!

I would strongly suggest getting your taste buds checked!

I only drink socially these days (i.e. not that often), so I don't really have an opinion either way on this.

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Chrisd..............because in a non self inflicted emergency you will be seen much quicker at A&E on a Friday night

 

[Ethan]

Are they going to increase the minimum price of steak pies because there are a lot of fat people?

A fat tax has been recently introduced in Denmark, although it is a slightly more complicated public health issue.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15137948

 

[SGC001]

I think they should tackle it a different way and make it cheaper in pubs and restaurants. If it was a £1 a pint instead of £3.50 plus people wouldn't feel the need to get wasted before they go out and could drink at a steady and potentially more social pace.

 

[bladeplayer]

Dont have the answer but ..
Why should booze be so cheap tho ? if the supermarkets etc are going to sell cheaper stuff why not every day reqiurements ?
why can you buy a bottle of beer for less than a litre of milk or bread etc ...
I think there are two ways to look at this , if drink problems have never blighted your family then this wont be such an issue if they have then it will be an emotional issue , alot of police & hospital services have their time take up by alcahol problems , causing family disputes & voilence etc , time that could be spent serving the community in more important ways , and we all know or know of the people i mean..

there is a very dark flipside to the theory of putting drink up also , alcaholics with familys will still drink , the same as most smokers will still smoke no mater the price , the problem the families have here is they have the same income but now more money is going on the more expensive drink , less for food etc .. there is a massive catch 22 in this idea ..
This is a very tough balancing act for any government to get right & either way it will have a big affect on families of drinkers , i do think it is aimed a pricing out the younger drinkers tho .. as with most things tho education is the key , put a plaster on it early or plaster of paris on it later ..

 

[Aztecs27]

I think they should tackle it a different way and make it cheaper in pubs and restaurants. If it was a £1 a pint instead of £3.50 plus people wouldn't feel the need to get wasted before they go out and could drink at a steady and potentially more social pace.

At current buying prices, that would be impossible, unfortunately. No one would make any money....well except the breweries!

 

[ADB]

I think they should tackle it a different way and make it cheaper in pubs and restaurants. If it was a £1 a pint instead of £3.50 plus people wouldn't feel the need to get wasted before they go out and could drink at a steady and potentially more social pace.

As a sweeping generalisation we would have to change our entire culture to adopt a more Continental all-night sippety sip, sociable, food-based night out which could see lower prices on alcohol work. Too many people enjoy getting twatted followed by a grease-bomb meal - low alcohol costs would simply see people hitting town earlier and getting drunk quicker.

 

[chrisd]

Chrisd..............because in a non self inflicted emergency you will be seen much quicker at A&E on a Friday night

That argument doesn't really make, hiking the price of drink up a good case, as far as I'm concerned. I'd rather anyone who's pissed out of their mind on a Friday night be refused access to A & E !!! But no doubt someone will tell me I'm wrong!

 

[DaveM]

I don't drink much. So don't really know. But if pubs/club, were made more responsible for the drunks? Large fines and the like for serving people under the influence. In time it would become self regulating?

On the cost of things at supermarkets. For all the deals they offer, they stick up the prices of the staples. For example. 2 litres of milk in our local Tesco £1.50. Exactly the same milk in the village shops 85p. that is just one of many.