HEALTH BODY BACKS MINIMUM PRICING

HEALTH BODY BACKS MINIMUM PRICING

SCOTLAND’S SYSTEM SETTING AN EXAMPLE FOR ENGLAND

The UK Government’s health advisers the National Institute for Clinical Excellence have backed proposals for minimum pricing and recommended Scotland’s efforts to tackle the problems alcohol causes in our society as examples for England to follow.

As well as endorsing minimum pricing, as proposed by the SNP Government, the report backs consideration of public health issues when granting alcohol licenses, part of the current Scottish licensing system, and the system of brief interventions to address alcohol problems faced by individuals.

SNP MSP and Health Committee member Michael Matheson said:

“This is a significant intervention by NICE. After two years of study NICE have come to what is increasingly the only workable and logical pricing solution to society’s problems with alcohol.

“As the UK Government’s own advisers on health policy their views must be listened to properly and fully considered.

“Price and availability are a crucial part of the picture when it comes to cutting consumption and the cost to the health service and our economy. Bans on selling below the price of cost and duty will not have the same impact on health and harmful drinking and supermarkets themselves admit they would not want to reveal what cost price is. It is now clear that only minimum pricing will deliver the desired effects on consumption and on public health.

“Scotland took a bold step to introduce the smoking ban after evidence from the same health professionals who are now supporting minimum pricing. It is time to listen to the evidence and to the increasing support across the health and justice systems and alcohol industry and take the same bold action to introduce a minimum price for alcohol."