Scottish minimum alcohol pricing to be passed! Yay...
41 replies, posted
[QUOTE]Plans to introduce minimum drink pricing in Scotland are expected to be passed by parliament.
The SNP government wants to set the price of alcohol at 50p per unit, to tackle Scotland's historic alcohol abuse problems.
Under the plans, the *cheapest bottle of wine would be £4.69 and a four-pack of lager would cost at least £3.52.
The move won broad political backing in Scotland although Labour does not support it in its current form.
The Alcohol Minimum Pricing Bill, which aims to help tackle drink-fuelled violence and associated health problems, is expected to clear its final parliamentary hurdle, with a vote at Holyrood.
Scottish Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said that, as drink had become cheaper, alcohol-related hospital admissions had quadrupled and half of prisoners said they were drunk when they committed offences.
A study into a 50p minimum alcohol price by Sheffield University said the policy would see a 5.5% cut in drinking - with harmful drinkers' consumption falling by more than 10%, compared with a 2.5% fall for moderate drinkers.
That would mean harmful drinkers having to spend more than £120 extra a year to keep up their habit, with an £8 increase for moderate drinkers, according to the research.[/QUOTE]
[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-18160832[/url]
[IMG]http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/60452000/jpg/_60452960_drink_pa.jpg[/IMG]
It will be interesting if this actually changes much, cause if anything people will just try and find more money... which could lead to more crime if they don't have it.
I get the ideas and concepts behind these types of moves, but I can't help but think that families may possibly be affected by this. Some people are so far off, they would prioritize beer over other essentials.
Why can't they just subsidize rehab instead?
Apparently the Scottish revolution is going to start earlier than expected, due to them tampering with their alcohol.
Well, if Scotland has as many teenage drinking (don't mind a beer, but vodka till you're sick at 14 is not good for you) problems as my area, I hope the extra cost brings that down a bit. It's so bad here that you start to wonder if the parents are the ones buying the alcohol.
We can all see how well jacking the price of alcohol and tobacco up with heavy taxation in the states works to curb excessive consumption (hint: it doesn't.) People just give up other more important things like food and living expenses to keep the addiciton going.
All it does is make the governments' wallet fatter, make people bitch about inflated prices and increase crime.
Been to countries with high prices and i have to say: it works.
As if this is going to solve anything... people will still get drunk and fuck each other up. It's not an alcohol issue, it's a social issue. They'll just pay the extra couple of quid and be as drunk as they used to be.
Im a scottish 16 year old and I'm ok with this.
[QUOTE=Jon27;36076194]Well, if Scotland has as many teenage drinking (don't mind a beer, but vodka till you're sick at 14 is not good for you) problems as my area, I hope the extra cost brings that down a bit. It's so bad here that you start to wonder if the parents are the ones buying the alcohol.[/QUOTE]
In the area I live in Fife, underage drinking is rife. The police and ambulances are kept busying stopping fights and taking away teenagers bloated with booze to have their stomachs pumped. Either the price going up will reduce this but most likely it will just mean they will look for other methods of getting the booze.
[QUOTE=gt118;36076241]Im a scottish 16 year old and I'm ok with this.[/QUOTE]
well i'm a drunk and this will certainly impact my holiday plans for Scotland!
I believe they passed a similar bill in Ireland recently.
Minimum alcohol required in your body. They have breathalyzer tests and if you're pulled over with a too small amount you can be arrested.
This is pretty shitty for alcoholics, if they can't afford alcohol, the withdrawal from it can kill them.
Oh lovely, now the poor are further locked out from non-essential leisure items
[QUOTE=gt118;36076241]Im a scottish 16 year old and I'm ok with this.[/QUOTE]
I'm a Scottish 19 year old and I'm not okay with this.
how am I meant to get wasted now
[QUOTE=Rents;36076360]This is pretty shitty for alcoholics, if they can't afford alcohol, the withdrawal from it can kill them.[/QUOTE]
I think being addicted to alcohol is probably worse in the long run.
god damn it
[QUOTE=Sobotnik;36076439]I think being addicted to alcohol is probably worse in the long run.[/QUOTE]
I dunno, going into a seizure and dying seems pretty bad in both short and long term.
[editline]24th May 2012[/editline]
What I mean is if you're actually wanting to help people who drink heavily, better drug education and support programs like rehab would help a hell of a lot more than trying to make them run out of money to buy alcohol with.
[QUOTE=dunkace;36076243]In the area I live in Fife, underage drinking is rife. The police and ambulances are kept busying stopping fights and taking away teenagers bloated with booze to have their stomachs pumped. Either the price going up will reduce this but most likely it will just mean they will look for other methods of getting the booze.[/QUOTE]
I doubt this price raise will make a dent on teenage drinking, kids will still be able to afford alcohol even if it is a bit more expensive.
It's not good when we have to do this because some people have failed at parenting
The problem is that this targets the wrong demographic. If they want binge drinking to stop then this does fuck all. People binge drink on the lower alcohol content stuff like flavoured vodkas and ciders whilst people who drink responsibly will most likely drink wines and whiskys. All this does is fucks over the responsible drinkers.
I really hope they don't touch alcohol pricing like that over here in Ireland.
[QUOTE=gt118;36076241]Im a scottish 16 year old and I'm ok with this.[/QUOTE]
im a 14 yo caucasian boy and i luuurve 2 get wasted harde bro u kno wat im sayin
last nite weddesdeh i went clubbn an got so dam wazteh i saw da bartednr as a a elephant mang booze 4 lief
[QUOTE=Rents;36076360]This is pretty shitty for alcoholics, if they can't afford alcohol, the withdrawal from it can kill them.[/QUOTE]
Maybe go to rehab instead?
[QUOTE=Sir Whoopsalot;36077078]Maybe go to rehab instead?[/QUOTE]
Sometimes you're so wasted you can't walk
I hope Carlisle prepares an extra aisle of booze for us in their supermarkets, because that's my new favourite town just over the border to go shopping.
[QUOTE=AceOfDivine;36077319]Sometimes you're so wasted you can't walk[/QUOTE]
But if they can't get wasted they can walk.
The funny thing is that this doesn't change the price of Scotland's most popular binge drink, a tonic wine called Buckfast. The price changes won't affect the underage drinkers, it will affect the older people who just want to have a casual drink.
[QUOTE=gt118;36076241]Im a scottish 16 year old and I'm ok with this.[/QUOTE]
I'm a scottish 16 year old and I'm outraged. I enjoy my drinks , same with everyone in my area , but nobody here who is underaged starts fights or needs the ambulance out, the only people who do that I've seen so far are the ones that are actually legally allowed to drink. Plus this also fucks everybody over , not just the underagers ; remember that. [b] I'm not condoning underage drinking , I'm just saying that trying to pin this on them is a bad idea and in the long run the only people really affected are the general public, not the underagers [/b]
[editline]24th May 2012[/editline]
[QUOTE=SeamanStains;36077588]I hope Carlisle prepares an extra aisle of booze for us in their supermarkets, because that's my new favourite town just over the border to go shopping.[/QUOTE]
Asda's now easily accessible from the motorway with the new bypass that's been built
This will do nothing, I live in stoke on trent, if its anything like here then people won't give a shit how much to costs. You can always get cheap drink, whether its white cider or fake vodka people won't care.
I'm 17, Scottish, and the price of alcohol doesn't affect me.
If they put a tax on pepsi, I would probably get mad.
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