Scotland’s 50p alcohol tax: Battling health with money

Scotland has elevated far beyond Theresa May’s 40p proclamation then, with an impetus to enforce a minimum 50p per unit levy on alcohol prices. Nicola Sturgeon’s arguments are less annoying than Theresa’s at least; if we were to hear yet another tirade of ‘pre-loading’ nonsense I fear for my health for entirely different reasons.

This time round however, the plans appear to be directed at the older and well established alcoholism. There has been very little mention of that diabolical term ‘binge drinking.’ Thank goodness.

As I argued previously, when I wrote about Theresa May’s ludicrous booze musings, these prices will not deter the youth of today from enjoying a hard session of drinking prior to a night’s revelry.

This time, there has been a greater emphasis on those suffering liver complaints, and prisoners who claim to have been drunk when they committed their offences. These plans seem to be aimed at alcoholics. And according to information, Scotland has even more alcohol related deaths than we do.

It’s unsurprising that there is a direct correlation between alcoholism and depression. Depression, in our beauteous world, has a fair bit to do with financial situation quite a lot of the time, funnily enough. So surely, if people are going to be forcibly out of pocket – because let’s face it, they’re still going to drink –they’re going to be even more depressed than before. But shouldn’t we be helping alcoholics, rather than punishing them? No? May as well have another pint then.

Fine, that’s all pretty sweeping. But if someone is addicted to alcohol, for whatever reason, they’re going to drink. Whether that’s a bottle of cheap wine or a four pack of strong lager, an extra five pounds might cause a fuss at the checkout, but they’re not going to go without a few litres of happiness for the sake of their smallest note.

Is the reversal of affordability really going to counterbalance a culture built on booze? Sheffield University’s statistics certainly point that way. But they seem pretty speculative to me . It simply assumes ‘harmful’ drinkers will suddenly stop their instinctive habits for the sake of a few quid.

Of course, there is no doubt these problems need addressing. And fine, the very poorest in society might, in the most extreme circumstances, have to go without an extra few cans during the week. But the additional cost to ‘harmful users’ is predicted to be around £120 a year. To people who really, really like drinking, that cost can be addressed.

Cut out the fish and chips on a Friday, buy cheaper cigarettes, stay at home drinking instead of going to the pub – all ways to carry on the habits without decrementing the lifestyle too much. We are in times of austerity, after all. But what else is there to do? As defeatist as it is, it seems the most tangible of options.

Our lands, both Scottish and English, have a love so deep for the besotted drug that is drink. And so indeed the government has to do something, and it appears this is it; battle health directly with money. It’s a bribe, or in carrot terms, an incentive.

There has been less discussion about student drinking this time round. And that’s good as it’s far more applicable to need. But really, those who love alcohol, and have loved it for many years, will not stay away. They’ll pay the extra.

To so many, beer is as important in life as a loaf of bread. This issue runs far deeper than BOGOF deals and Value vodka – sorry, ‘Everyday Value’ – this issue is cemented deep within. On an island where for some, drinking is close to a religion, it’s going to take a bit more than an eradication of the cheapest prices to convert the faithful.

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• Joree

  What I hear a lot from hard-core alcoholics, is that they drink whenever they have money. When they have money, they’ll spend all they have on drink. Often to the tune of 9 litres a day. When they don’t have money they may beg or busk, and they might not spurn a bit of shoplifting, but I don’t hear them talking about crime to the extent that heroin and crack addicts do. I do hear them saying – ‘I’ve stopped drinking because I haven’t got any money’. Or, ‘When I have money, I drink as much as I can’. 

  A bit of online shopping reveals I can buy 3 litres of white cider for £3.89. And that’s before any discounts. It’s 7.5%, which equals 7.5 units a litre, 22.5 units in the bottle, just over 17p a unit. At minimum 40p a unit this bottle would cost £9, at 50p a unit it would be £11.25. If someone is going to ‘drink up all my money’, they can only drink a third of what they used to. That is a massive benefit for their health, let alone for society (think cost to the NHS, drunk and disorderly behaviour etc.). 

  Someone who drinks 9 litres of this stuff a day (and there are plenty), can get it now for 11.67. At 40p a unit it would cost them £27, 50p a unit £33.75. Every day. In Schotland, that’s a whopping £8,059 a year. Averages (the £120 a year Josh mentions) don’t mean anything. It’s the outliers whose drinking is the big problem. And it’s the outliers whose drinking will be reduced by higher pricing.

  Yes, price DOES make a difference. It does to people who drink massive amounts of extremely cheap alcohol, and keep drinking until all their money is gone. It does to anyone who spends whatever money they have on drink. It’s these people that are the highest risk for homelessness, liver failure etc. Any reduction in their drinking is a bonus.

• http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/QRVZMTC4PHPJFYSAOJTVKWIEYA Hamish

  I don’t know – maybe this will work but where I live in France I’ve seen one drunk in eight years.
  A reasonable quality wine can be had for 80cents a litre. What would cost £6 – £7 in the uk costs about €2.50 here. I pay about €3 for a 6pack of 500ml bottles of German Beer. So what’s the difference? Why does the uk have this binge drinking problem? Occasionally at a party where there are ex pats from the uk as well as the French there’ll be a Brit who drinks too much – the reactions are telling – the other Brits tend to be amused but the French will be embarrassed and make tut tutting noises in a gently reproving way. 

• VicTheBrit

  How about offering some alternatives here instead of just upping the income for the revenuers?

  Wean the Scots off the sauce by decriminalising all those classified drugs less harmful than baccy and alcohol – LSD, GBH, Ecstacy and Quat? You know it makes sence!

• http://twitter.com/JoshBythespires Josh Barrie

  Some great points. And sure, for the very poor, this may indeed help to an extent. Though those who are truly addicted to alcohol need more than a pricing out policy. They need support. And in the most extreme circumstances, there are always ways to get a fix; be that other drugs, a black market, or theft. These may sound far-fetched, but I’ve talked to alcoholics who have even drank alcoholic hand disinfectant in order to satisfy their craving. My point is that alcoholism needs addressing, and it needs more than a cost increase to help those who suffer. Desperate people resort to desperate means.

• http://www.facebook.com/people/Brian-Jamieson/629899261 Brian Jamieson

  Josh I suggest you read work done by Roberts & Eldridge of Westminster University who have studied this issue. I recall they have argued to increase the cost of takeaways and also reduce the prices in pubs, bars & clubs. This could encourage more social forms of drinking rather than potentially irresponsible pre-loading at home or on the street. Promote more inter-generational drinking so normal social rules apply rather than groups of same aged peers egging each other on to excess. I definitely would prefer to have more local pubs rather than have them all close up because they can’t compete with the big chain stores discount booze. 

• macstevie

  More to the point of all of this talk of increasing the cost of alcohol,is why isn’t the extra revenue raised from this being directed into programs to help alcoholics?This is the question that needs an answer.This is the question that is not being asked.Why not?

• williamfatbear

  In China you can get a half litre bottle of Baijiu (52% spirit) for less than 80 pence. men, especially older men drink with meals and occasionally when playing mahjiang, gambling. people get drunk as a part of normal life and business. Drinking is a part of life and the culture, but it is an accompaniment to food or entertainment. In the UK food and entertainment are used to accompany drinking. Kebabs. I think that is a big difference. drinking is an activity in the UK. not conversation or karaoke or eating. these occur, but might not be considered an evening activity in the same way as drinking. It is also offensive to compete with drinking in China. You lose peoples respect if you try to do this.

• bigbellabongo

   There you go. Drunk in Britain = socially acceptable/actively encouraged, Drunk in France = societal disapproval.

• http://www.facebook.com/people/Jimmy-ORourke/100002129710724 Jimmy ORourke

  If drink gets too dear people will do what they used to do when I was a young man, they will produce their own alcohol and drink more and less safely than they currently do.

• RolftheGanger

  You are posing a false choice. As if the Scottish Government was viewing minimum pricing as the and only action to take. That is simply not the case.

  Minimum pricing is just one part of a set of solutions. So we actually agree.

  Wider action would include getting rid of incompetent Westminster rule and having a Scottish Government with power to manage the Scottish economy to generate growth, jobs and above all hope, for those currently stuck in the Union mire of misgovernment.